The catastrophic failure of a tailings storage facility at Vale’s Corrego do Feijão mine in Brumadinho, Brazil, on 25 January 2019 is a human and environmental tragedy. When the dam collapsed, shortly after noon, 11.7 million cubic meters of mining waste surged through the mine site towards the local town and countryside below, resulting in over five miles of destruction. As of 9 September 2019, 248 people are confirmed dead, and 22 are missing. This is a stark reminder that, while the mining and metals industry has come a long way in improving how it operates, there’s still much more that can be done to safeguard lives, improve performance and demonstrate transparency.

The International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) share a commitment to the adoption of global best practices on tailings storage facilities. They have co-convened this global tailings review to establish an international standard. This review is being led by Dr Bruno Oberle.

Remembering Brumadinho

One year on from the Brumadinho dam collapse, Bruno Oberle, Chair of the Global Tailings Review, made the following statement:

“On the anniversary of the devastating tragedy at Brumadinho, we remember those who lost their lives and those whose lives will forever more be impacted by loss suffered on that day.”

“Since July 2019, I have led the Global Tailings Review (GTR) which was co-convened by the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in response to this tragedy.  Our mission is to establish an international standard for the safer management of tailings facilities with the ultimate goal of preventing another such event.

“A draft Standard, which was the culmination of an initial research phase, was shared globally for public consultation in November 2019. With the consultation conducted online in seven languages, and through in-person consultation in Kazakhstan, China, Chile, Ghana, South Africa and Australia, many constructive and helpful insights were received from a wide variety of stakeholders. We are currently in the process of analysing the comprehensive feedback received and balancing diverse stakeholder views to strengthen the Standard.

“The first anniversary is a strong reminder of the importance of our work and we remain highly motivated to create a product that will deliver a step change in the safe management of tailings facilities across the industry.”

ICMM’s Butler talks tailings on anniversary of Brumadinho collapse

One year on from the Brumadinho dam collapse, ICMM CEO, Tom Butler, says the mining industry may have made progress with how it operates, but it still has much more to do to on the environmental, social and governance front.

The collapse, which reportedly killed 270 people, was attributed to poor internal drainage and intense rain among other factors, Vale said back in December.

In a statement, he said: “The dam collapse at Vale’s Corrego do Feijão mine in Brumadinho, Brazil, on January 25, 2019, was a human and environmental tragedy. One year on, we remember the victims of this catastrophic event and our thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones.

“The anniversary is a stark reminder that, while the mining and metals industry has come a long way in improving how it operates, there is still much more to do to safeguard lives, improve its environmental performance and demonstrate transparency.

“Shortly after the disaster, in an effort to drive change and establish best practice, the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) co-convened the Global Tailings Review to establish an international standard for the safer management of tailings storage facilities. The Global Tailings Standard, once endorsed by all three co-conveners, will be published later this year. The standard will become a commitment of ICMM membership and we will encourage others to join us in advocating for it to be adopted more broadly across the industry.

“In addition, ICMM is taking action by working in partnership – with technology providers, experts and researchers – to promote innovation in the monitoring and surveillance of tailings storage facilities and the development of alternative methods of mineral recovery to significantly reduce or eliminate the generation of tailings.”