28/11/2019
This year, Samarco resumed its Visitors Program in Germano, Ubu and Matipo to show its initiatives to improve safety and to answer questions about the actions to resume its operation, without the use of a tailings dam. In 2019, there have been more than 1,200 visitors, including students, family members of employees and representatives of communities, mining companies, public authorities and unions.
The visitors schedule includes the Monitoring and Inspection Center (MIC), which operates around the clock (24/7). It is part of the Monitoring System, which currently has about 840 pieces of state-of-the-art equipment to monitor Samarco’s geotechnical structures in Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo.
The technology employed at the MIC was also praised by Australia’s ambassador to Brazil, Timothy Kane, who was at the Germano Complex in September this year. “The future of mining in Brazil will be more positive and I am very optimistic after today’s visit, as I recognize that the changes I have seen here are very similar to those in Australia today,” Kane highlighted at the time.
For Samarco’s Communications and Institutional Relations manager, Rodolpho Samorini, the Visitors Program is an important public relations channel for the company. “It allows us to have face-to-face and transparent dialogue with several audiences, from neighboring communities to people with more technical interest, such as students and professionals from other mining companies. We understand that this knowledge exchange is fundamental for the development of our sector”, he points out.
In order to contribute to the training of new mining professionals, Samarco received 26 senior Mining Engineering students from the Federal University of Ouro Preto (UFOP) for a technical visit to the Germano Complex in November. Together with Professor Hernani Lima, they learned about the work that was done to prepare the Alegria Sul Pit for tailings disposal and the Integrated Safety System.
“We were well attended to and received detailed information as requested. It was essential for the students to see how an industry operates and learn about the practical application of what they study in class” said Prof. Lima.
