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Independent Scientific and Technical Advisory Panels (ISTAPs) have been established to help address a range of controversial conservation and development issues that have emerged with growing frequency and complexity at national and global levels.

Based on the volume of tailings releases and the distance they travelled, the Fundão Dam failure in southeast Brazil (Mariana, Minas Gerais state) was the largest ever environmental disaster in Brazil’s mining industry, and one of the world’s most serious.

The Rio Doce watershed and its adjacent coastal and marine areas have been affected by centuries of extractive activities and unsustainable agricultural practices.

The report contextualises the current status of water quality and biodiversity in the Rio Doce watershed, providing selected data and information on the physical, chemical and biological quality of the water and an overview of the terrestrial, freshwater and marine biodiversity since the dam rupt

Increased risk of climate change makes the communities in the Rio Doce more vulnerable to events, such as flooding, landslides and coastal erosion, indicating the need for policies and investments to build institutional and  societal resilience for climate change adaptation, particularly in regar

On 5 November 2015, a large dam containing 52 million m3 of iron mining residues (tailings) collapsed in Mariana, Brazil.