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BHP

Controversies

Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.

Back to profile4 entries

  1. 2022

    Chile fines Escondida mine over water-extraction damage

    Fine or penalty

    Chile's environmental regulator fined Escondida mine $8.2 million for damage caused by water extraction in the Salar de Atacama. The regulator said the mine's owner caused irreparable environmental damage; BHP denied violating its environmental permit and said it was evaluating further action.

    Company response

    • Denial — BHP

      BHP denied non-compliance with its environmental permit

    • Investigation — BHP

      said it is evaluating further action

    Source excerpt

    • the owner caused irreparable environmental damage in Las Vegas de Tilopozo
    • Chile’s environmental regulator said on Thursday it had fined Escondida mine, controlled by company BHP, $8.2 million for damage caused by water extraction in the Salar de Atacama salt flat.
    • BHP denied non-compliance with its environmental permit and said it is evaluating further action.
    Source

  2. 2022

    BHP Iron Ore fined after workplace safety incident

    Fine or penalty

    BHP Iron Ore Pty Ltd was fined $125,000 after a contractor was seriously injured in a 2017 workplace incident. The company pleaded guilty to causing serious harm to an employee and failing to provide a workplace free of hazards.

    Source excerpt

    • BHP pleaded guilty in the South Hedland Magistrates Court after being charged with causing serious harm to an employee and failing to provide a workplace where employees were not exposed to hazards.
    • BHP Iron Ore Pty Ltd was today fined $125,000 after a contractor suffered a lacerated artery from being struck in the neck by a metal shard in September 2017.
    Source

  3. 2015

    Olympic Games hospitality program enforcement action

    The US Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that BHP Billiton failed to maintain adequate controls over a hospitality program that invited government and state-owned-enterprise officials to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. BHP agreed to pay a US$25 million penalty without admitting or denying the SEC’s findings.

    Source

  4. 1990

    Ok Tedi environmental controversy

    BHP’s involvement in the Ok Tedi copper mine in Papua New Guinea became associated with extensive environmental degradation and legal action brought by indigenous communities. The episode became a major example of the environmental and social risks connected with large-scale mining.

    Source