Brazilian lawyer appeared in court against BHP over Mariana dam collapse

Locals in the close-knit community of 600 people of Bento Rodrigues have long questioned the safety of the dam rising above their village.

According to Dead River, a podcast about the disaster, Edinaldo Oliveira de Assis, a digger operator at the dam, had previously told his wife that he feared for his life.

He would take videos of the problem areas and show where the mud was dripping.

Assis was killed when the dam collapsed. His wife hasn’t received anything so far.

Blackstone Chambers’ Shaheed Fatima, on behalf of BHP, focused on the “clear distinction between direct and indirect pollutants” in her opening statement on Wednesday.

He argued that the direct polluter must actually “operate” or “carry out” the activity that caused the damage and therefore BHP, as the controlling shareholder, directed and directed the company but could not ultimately be liable for the damage.

On the second day of the trial, a study investigating the long-term impact of dam collapse was published by the Getulio Vargas Foundation in Brazil.

He discovered that heavy metals in the sludge (iron, silicon and aluminum) poisoned the water supply and reduced life expectancy by two and a half years per person. And horrifyingly, the number of miscarriages increased by 400 percent.

Luciano Magalhaes, a biologist who works for one of Brazil’s largest water purification companies, told Dead River: “It looks like they threw an entire periodic table into the river. It’s of no use anymore.”

‘You couldn’t see the water, only the fish was dead’

Jonathan Knowles, originally from Harrogate, was living on the banks of the River Doce in Govenador Valadares with his Brazilian partner and son when the dam collapsed.

He said: “On the first day there were rumors that a tidal wave was on the way. Thick, gloomy waves emerged on the second day. On the third day the situation was biblical; “You couldn’t see the water, there were just dead fish as far as the eye could see.”

At first, he says, they were instructed to store as much water as possible, but then when the water became toxic, trucks rolled around trying to make daily deliveries of bottled water to the 280,000 people who rely on Doce for their supply. .

“When the trucks arrived, the tires were kicking up dust and you could see all the metal inside shining. “People will probably consume this for the rest of their lives,” he said.

Mr Knowles has since returned to Harrogate with his family.

Ms. Fernandes, meanwhile, has not opened a book to study again since that November day in 2015 and has no permanent home; In recent years, she has been constantly moving with her three children.

For the indigenous Krenak community who lived along the river for hundreds of years, Doce was not only their source of food and water, but also their god.

Outside the Supreme Court, they stand proudly in their helmets, holding up murky brown water bottles labeled “taste of neglect” and offering a swig to Blackstone Chambers’ top legal minds as they file into the court, heads down.