On November 5 in Brazil, there were major dam breaks that were holding back millions of cubic meters of mining iron wastes. This has been described as one of Brazil's worst environmental disasters. The mining waste, which was being stored behind these dams, are referred to as tailings. They contain a toxic soup of leftover metals, like arsenic lead and chromium that is generated by the mining process.

There is currently no effective and environmentally friendly way of getting rid of the wastes of mining. This storing method is not environmentally recommended at all, because the toxic material will eventually leech into the groundwater of the community, and that would reach other surrounding areas down the road. But with having this dam break, it has virtually contaminated a large area in far less time. The environment may not bounce back because of the amount of toxic waste that is flooding the Mariana community.

According to Greenpeace, the mining company heading the dam, Samarcos, is the one responsible for compensating for the damages. They were not aptly prepared for a breach like this to happen and had no backup plan at all for the communities that were directly in the path of the dams’ devastation. The government of the state of Minas Gerias is also to blame, with Greenpeace saying, “authorities in Minas Gerais state continue to cater to corporate interests over the public good. The operational license for the dam that collapsed was not recommended because of risk of destabilisation. Yet this year the government of Minas Gerais has proposed new legislation to accelerate environmental licenses for the mining sector. The state already has more than 700 waste dams, but only four public employees to monitor them.”

We are already too familiar with governments ignoring the warning signs of a potentially dangerous situation, but could care less because of financial gain. However, without a planning for the dangers that could result from keeping an unstable dam, they now have to compensate for what they lost. They also have to plan ahead how: the contaminants will reach the ocean and affect the fishing industry, and the leeching of the materials in the soil will affect ranchers and their crops and their animals. All of these events will definitely affect the economy down the road.

Since then, the company has expressed their deepest sympathies. The company says, "We are deeply sorry for all those who have been impacted by this tragedy, in particular for the friends and families of those who died and those who are missing, as well as those who have lost their homes and feel uncertain about the future." And they are going to invest $363 million for rebuilding efforts. Additionally, many people have become angered at the slow government response. Sandra Cureau, federal prosecutor for Brazil’s environmental sector, says, “There seems to have been a total indifference among all parties about the plight of the victims in this disaster, the people who didn’t receive aid, the children who died, the rivers that have been destroyed.”

This lack of response is due to the fact that Brazil has never experienced a catastrophic event like this. However, there might be stricter regulations for the numerous other dams located in Brazil, and more inspections done on the dams and addressing the problem ahead of the time if they are showing sign of decay. Our environment is already in a fragile state, and if these large-scale disasters keep on happening, we will be decreasing the amount of places that are inhabitable.