“No Relief for 4000 People Affected by Brazil Mine Spill”, 07 April 2021

...On March 25th, a tailings dam at the Aurizona mine overflowed in Godofredo Viana in the state of Maranhão, Northeastern Brazil, contaminating surrounding rivers and leaving around 4000 residents without potable water. The mine is the property of Canadian mining company Equinox Gold...This socio-environmental emergency is happening as the state of Maranhão reports the highest number of coronavirus deaths in a single day since the onset of the pandemic...Families affected demand an urgent potable water supply. The company met with members of the community on the weekend of March 27th, and promised to provide drinking water. However, MAB…[the Movement of People Affected by Dams]...affirms that the water being distributed by the company is not enough...Many affected families remain without any access to water...In 2018, a landslide of waste rock swept the road away, blocking access to the community and affecting mangrove habitats and natural water streams nearby...This tailing spill disaster is an opportunity to bring to light a series of human rights violations that have occurred since the Equinox Gold mining project started operations in 2010…[:]...The company acts as if all Aurizona district is its private property, preventing local residents from catching crabs and collecting fruits...Residents that are caught practicing these activities are taken by private security guards to the police…The company operating the mine is Mineração Aurizona S.A. (MASA), a subsidiary of Equinox Gold. To date, both MASA and Equinox Gold have denied any responsibility for the tailings spill. While MASA published a press release denying any wrongdoing, the company has not yet delivered the Stability Condition Statement (DCE) to the Brazilian government...Equinox has yet to publicly address the disaster...