Brazil environmental disaster victims take case against mining giant BHP to UK court

LONDON (AP) — Victims of Brazil’s worst environmental disaster are taking their case for compensation to a UK court on Monday. It’s almost nine years after tons of toxic mining waste poured into a major waterway, killing 19 people and devastating local communities. The law firm representing the plaintiffs says the class action lawsuit at the High Court in London seeks an estimated 36 billion pounds ($47 billion) in damages from the global mining giant BHP. That would make it the largest environmental payout ever. The rupture released enough mine waste to fill 13,000 Olympic-size swimming pools into a river that has yet to recover.