In Dutch Court Over Alleged Contamination From Alunorte Alumina Refinery
Norwegian aluminium producer Norsk Hydro ASA is facing civil charges in court that it allowed the world’s biggest aluminium smelter contaminate a nearby river in Brazil, harming thousands of indigenous families in the area.
Plaintiffs in the Dutch suit say the pollution from Alunorte occurred for several years in the state of Para. Listed on the complaint are nine individuals claiming harm and the group Cainquiama, an association of about 11 thousand local indigenous families. Norsk Hydro is named in the suit, along with co-defendants including several subsidiaries and shareholders in the firm.
“A lot of people have suffered horrible health effects as a result […] That dates back at least two decades,” explained plaintiffs’ attorney Marc Krestin to the AFP last week.
“Some developed various forms of cancer. Others developed skin diseases […] Babies have been born with their intestines outside their bodies.”
The overflow of red mud that the plaintiffs are alleging “resulted in many of the indigenous tribes […] suffering from poor physical health as well as taking away their income and access to food and clean water.”
