Brazil’s National Mining Agency (ANM) said on Thursday that it would halt operations at 47 mining dams that failed to certify their stability, including at least 25 belonging to the world’s largest iron-ore producer Vale.
The safety of Vale’s facilities have been under heavy scrutiny after one of its dam collapsed last year, releasing a torrent of mining waste that killed about 270 people. It was the second Vale dam to collapse in four years.
Last October, 54 Brazilian dams failed to certify their stability or file the stability paperwork altogether.
Many of the same dams remain on the list and several new dams operated by Vale or its affiliates were added.