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Two civic organisations have asked iron-ore
miner Vale to cease mining operations at its major Serra Norte complex in
northern Brazil, according to documents seen by Reuters this week, as a major
Covid-19 spike tests the capacity of the region's hospitals.
The requests came from the lawyers' guild
for the town of Parauapebas and the regional doctors' association, according to
the documents.
Parauapebas, a city of 210 000 people where
the Serra Norte complex is located, entered a lockdown on Sunday, due to a
significant increase in coronavirus cases. Mining, however, is considered an
essential activity and Vale's operations there continue.
"Really the situation here is one of
collapse. We don't have ICU beds available," said Maura Regina Paulino,
leader of the local lawyers' guild. "Mining is the principal activity here
and it is considered essential. So despite the lockdown declared by the mayor,
the movement of mine workers is constant."
Vale and the lawyers' association for the
state of Para, where Parauapebas is located, are set to meet on Friday, said
Rubens Moraes Júnior, who sits on the board of the state association.
Vale told Reuters it has been reinforcing
measures in place since the beginning of the pandemic to prevent the spread of
Covid-19 in the areas where it operates.
It said preventative measures include the
"drastic reduction" of personnel at its operational and
administrative facilities, adding it has so far carried out some 1.2-million
tests among direct and indirect employees.
The company did not directly address the
requests from the local civic associations.
Serra Norte, together with its sister
complex Serra Leste, produced about 31-million tonnes of iron-ore in the fourth
quarter, according to company figures, roughly 37% of the company's total
output.