Braskem, a Novonor group company (formerly Odebrecht), has been mining rock salt in Maceió, Alagoas, since the 70s and 80s. According to the investigative journalism centre Observatório da Mineração, the inadequate exploitation of Braskem's mines would be responsible for the creation of faults and craters in the region, damaging hundreds of houses, which began to present cracks and sinking, and forcing the displacement of about 55,000 people in four neighbourhoods of the city. The Observatory classifies the situation as "the largest ongoing urban disaster in the world". This is because, although an agreement has been signed between the company and the affected communities, the amount of R$ 81,000.00 per family is insufficient for the acquisition of another property similar to those damaged, in addition to not repairing all the damage caused by the mining activity. In addition, Braskem now owns the affected neighbourhoods, whose long-term appreciation could represent a revenue of R$40 billion for the petrochemical company, much higher than the R$10 billion used to pay the indemnities. We invited Braskem to comment on the Mining Observatory's allegations and the company did so (available in Portuguese).