Environmental News

Company Says Risk for Environmental Disaster From Pile in Louisiana Falling

Officials with a company that owns an unstable phosphogypsum pile and a lake of acidic water atop it say they’re encouraged by recent efforts to halt a potential environmental disaster in a Louisiana parish. Unexpected movement along the northern face …

Brazil Probe into Possible Safety Cover-up by Vale Could Lead to Massive Fine

Brazil’s mining authorities have started a probe into Vale SA over a possible coverup regarding safety procedures that could lead to a fine of up to 20 percent of their 2018 gross revenue. The country’s mining secretary, Alexandre Vidigal de …

Brazil Senate Passes Dam Safety Bill After Vale Disaster; Insurance Provision Eyed

Brazilian Senate committees on Wednesday passed a bill to tighten dam safety in the country, after a mining dam owned by Vale SA burst and killed an estimated 300 people in the town of Brumadinho. The legislation, which tightens safety …

Brazil Tailings Dam Disaster Pushes Mining CEOs to Make Safety Changes

After last month’s deadly tailings dam disaster at a Vale SA facility in Brazil, Freeport-McMoRan Inc Chief Executive Richard Adkerson sent a memo to his 29,000 employees telling them to immediately report any safety concerns about the scores of dams …

Southern California Gas Leak Settlement Raises Stink

A stink is being raised over a $120 million court settlement from the nation’s largest-known natural gas leak and it’s not about money, but cow manure. Environmental groups have criticized a plan to put more than a fifth of the …

Brazil Prosecutors Seek Arrest of Vale Executive after Tailings Dam Disaster

Brazilian federal prosecutors are seeking the arrest of a Vale SA senior executive, authorities said on Friday, following the collapse of a dam holding mining byproducts that is believed to have killed over 300 people. This is the first time …

Shipping Company Fined $2M for Dumping Oily Waste into Gulf

A federal judge ordered a shipping company to pay $2 million in fines after one of its tankers illegally dumped oily waste into the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Louisiana. Interorient Marine Services Limited was fined Feb. 13 …

Alabama Coal Firm to Pay $775K in Air Pollution Penalties

One of Alabama’s largest coal companies has agreed to pay $775,000 in penalties related to air pollution violations near Birmingham. Al.com reported Feb 12. that the proposed Drummond Company settlement comes nearly eight years after violations were discovered during a …

Vale’s Senior Management Unaware of Dam Risk Report, Says CFO

Senior management at Brazilian miner Vale were never shown internal security documents indicating that its dam at Brumadinho was at risk of collapse, the company’s chief financial officer said on Tuesday [Feb. 12]. The CFO, Luciano Siani, was asked about …

Brazil Miner Vale Knew Its Tailings Dam Had Higher Risk of Collapse: Reuters

Vale SA , the world’s largest iron ore miner, knew last year that the dam in Brazil that collapsed in January and killed at least 165 people had a heightened risk of rupturing, according to an internal document seen by …