The Samarco disaster in Brazil could be as big a corporate disaster as Deepwater Horizon – is corporate governance failing employees and the planet?
The bursting of two dams at the Samarco iron ore mine in Brazil means there is another corporate scandal facing big business. The Anglo-Australian mining company BHP Billiton and its Brazilian partner Vale have been fined almost £50m by the Brazilian government after a deadly mudslide at their jointly-owned mine.
The two companies could have to fork out $1bn (£657m) in clean-up costs – and probably more in lawsuits and compensation – and the disaster has the potential to be as damaging, at least in terms of reputation, as BP’s Deepwater Horizon disaster of 2010 and the Volkswagen emissions crisis.
Continue reading…
Source: Guardian Environment