The ad-free version is ready for purchase on iOS mobile app today we couldn't find that page";var n=e.querySelector("h2");return n&&n.remove(),{staticContent:e,title:t}},d=function(e){var t=document.createElement("button");return t.innerText=e,t.classList.add("error-page-button"),t},f=function(e){var t=document.createElement("div");t.id="recirculation-404",t.classList.add("brand-hint-bg");var n="\n \n \n \n \n \n '.concat(e,' Tick here if you would like us to send you the author’s response U.K.-based mining giant Anglo American is making huge profits exporting iron ore from Brazil to China but is leaving little behind for local communities whose lives are now gripped by uncertainty and fear The Minas-Rio mining project extracts and processes iron ore in the municipalities of Conceição do Mato Dentro and Alvorada de Minas in Brazil’s southeastern Minas Gerais state It then transports the powdered ore through a 529-kilometer (328-mile) pipeline to Açu Port in Rio de Janeiro Considered the world’s longest mineral duct its reported use of the region’s natural water resources is blamed by local communities for shortages and pollution The pipeline ruptured twice in 2018 spilling almost 1,000 metric tons of iron ore These incidents are symptomatic of a lack of transparency in how the miner does business which is odds with industry best practices and offers few tangible benefits to the most impacted rural communities according to a joint report by the Brazilian Institute for Social and Economic Analysis (IBASE) and Publish What You Pay a global transparency coalition focused on the extractive sector Mine-related dust and noise from the Minas-Rio mining project have replaced the calm routine of rural life and the region’s rivers and streams are now either silted or polluted affecting several communities’ drinking water supply as well as their farming activities And the underlying lack of transparency in the country’s mining sector aggravates the impacts “Information was very difficult to find, and what we were able to find revealed a huge issue with Brazil’s natural resource governance,” Athayde Motta, executive director of IBASE and co-author of the report, “In Search of Transparency: Ending Opacity in Brazil’s Extractive Sector,” told Mongabay by phone “Since we started research for this report that governance has been torn apart even further.” but may soon be allowed if another controversial bill is approved The report recommended that the Brazilian government join the 55 countries already affiliated with the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative which aims to set a new global gold standard for mining and oil governance Anglo American said that it “strictly complies with the applicable legislation and has its activities licensed and monitored by the competent authorities” and that it “already follows the best international standards and guidelines.” In Brazil it “operates with total regularity in the host cities control and monitoring of social and environmental impacts.” The Brazilian government and the Ministry of Mines and Energy did not respond to Mongabay’s request for comment “These multinational companies all claim to operate respecting country laws But local laws are often inferior to international best practices and that seems to be the case in Brazil,” Miles Litvinoff another co-author of the report and former director of Publish What You Pay U.K. Alice spent her childhood playing at a waterfall near her home and in its place stands the giant dam that holds back Anglo American’s mining waste They live within what first responders call the self-rescue zone: if Anglo American’s tailings dam were to break the wave of toxic sludge would reach them before emergency teams could arrive “Everyone here lives in constant fear with or without rain,” Alice told Mongabay by phone Anglo American has offered to pay for the relocation of anyone living within this zone and says that 80% of families have voluntarily opted in But Alice says the terms aren’t good enough will we have food to eat when our money runs out?” she asked “Maybe it brought some benefits for people in the cities her family’s rural life is plagued by sudden explosions and a foul smell from the mine less than 1.5 km (nearly a mile) from her home her family now depends on Anglo American’s water trucks for drinking water while their farm animals drink contaminated water from the river Concerns had been raised by local communities about the impacts on their livelihoods from the get-go before the mine was fully licensed but they were brushed off by local authorities “[R]ural communities’ anxieties … were discounted during the licensing stages as expressions only of “perception” and “alleged” or “supposed” impacts rather than as objectively real consequences of the mine and its infrastructure,” the report says only $34 million is paid to the municipalities in which it operates with local activists saying no tangible benefits reach those most impacted by the mine There is no indication of any illegal activity but the report authors question why Brazil has made such a poor deal on its natural resources “Companies should make a reasonable profit off of extracting everything else should be in the public domain and used for the public good.” For José Fernando de Oliveira, the mayor of Conceição do Mato Dentro and a self-proclaimed environmentalist the mining project will pay off in the long run He said the company has made an active effort to offset negative impacts adding that more than 70% of the municipality’s revenue now comes from mining royalties “We’re going through a period of economic growth and our mission is to turn that growth into development and quality of life,” Oliveira said by phone adding that the mine supports investments in ecotourism and infrastructure “There is a huge concern on the company’s side to mitigate the negative impacts and invest in positive ones such as financing economic diversification Mining doesn’t have a second harvest But for civil society and rural community members “Anglo American talks a very good talk about all their various initiatives then why are there people under witness protection programs who opposed the mine Why do we get evidence that communities are divided and unable to pursue their traditional livelihoods and fearful of dam breaches?” Litvinoff said Banner image: Anglo American’s Minas-Rio mining project has upended the once calm routine of rural life in the municipality of Conceição do Mato Dentro in Brazil’s southeastern Minas Gerais state This image shows the jubilee party of Bom Jesus do Matosinhos in Conceição do Mato Dentro Image courtesy of Alexandre Guzanshe/IBASE FEEDBACK: Use this form to send a message to the author of this post The “fortress conservation” model is under pressure in East Africa as protected areas become battlegrounds over history and global efforts to halt biodiversity loss Mongabay’s Special Issue goes beyond the region’s world-renowned safaris to examine how rural communities and governments are reckoning with conservation’s colonial origins and trying to forge a path forward […] in Conceição do Mato Dentro - Minas-Rio project only 30% would be for people in the region All original content produced and editorially authored by Brasil de Fato may be reproduced provided it is not altered and proper credit is given All original content produced and editorially authored by Brasil de Fato may be reproduced provided it is not altered and proper credit is given.