Brazil: Over 60 organisations sign an open letter calling on Equinox Gold and Brazilian authorities to address the emergency caused by the Aurizona gold mine spill
MAB Maranhão
"Open Letter to Equinox Gold and Brazilian Authorities", 25 May 2021
...We, Brazilian and international civil society organizations, would like to express our great concern and indignation about the situation currently affecting 1,500 families of the Aurizona district, located in the municipality of Godofredo Viana, in the Amazon region of the Brazilian state of Maranhão...Although the company continues to insist that the water it is distributing is clean, the affected families report it presents traces of mud and a strong odour. Contact with this water has generated health problems such as skin rashes in children, youths, and adults of the region...Through this open letter, we call on the mining company, Equinox Gold, but also the authorities at the municipal, state, and national levels to establish a permanent channel of dialogue with the community...