Brumadinho’s Disaster, Mine Tailing Dams and the Environmental Licencing in Brazil: Preventing Risks to Human Wellbeing, Soils, and the Environment

In a context of socio-ecological crisis, mining activities are considered one of the most degrading human activities, with soil degradation their prime negative effect. These impacts are exacerbated in cases such as Brumadinho, in which mining incidents led to large scale disasters. For example the Brumadinho’s disaster, the Corrego do Feijao’s mine tailings dam collapsed on the 25th of January 2019, around 12:28 p.m., releasing roughly 12 million cubic meters of iron ore tailings into the river and its surroundings; later reaching the Paraopeba River—one of the biggest tributaries of Sao Francisco River. This is considered one of the country’s major mining disasters and resulted in an estimated 230 deaths. In light of this, this chapter aims at addressing the issue of Brumadinho’s disaster and mine tailing dams, highlighting the role and importance of the environmental licencing process in Brazil as a preventive instrument in risk assessment.