We recognize that our activities can, in some situations, pose physical risks to the communities we interact with. As part of an ongoing cultural transformation process and our commitment to putting safety first, Vale is currently reviewing the ways our operations can affect society. One of the transformation vectors involves Community Safety, understood as the management of risks and impacts associated with threats to people's physical integrity caused by the company's presence in the territory. 


Our approach to managing impacts in other dimensions (occupational health and safety, environment, and process safety) is extended to our communities with the same level of commitment and dedication. Vale’s Community Safety process has been designed and implemented within our Vale's Social Action model and is standardized in the Health, Safety, Environment, Community and Process Safety Event Management process at Vale.  
 
This process addresses safety-related events with potential social impacts, that resulting in injury to non-employees that occur in areas under Vale's responsibility or in external areas during production or production support activities.   
 
Immediate emergency response measures are taken in response to these events, regardless of which parties are liable, according to parameters established in internal rules. Any such events are documented and investigated to identify their causes and define actions to reduce the risk of recurrence. These actions may include communication with communities to strengthen their risk perception and align initiatives with local needs, in addition to reviewing internal processes and improving equipment. 

Our Community Safety process has been structured based on the following levers: 

Standardization

Developing standards and policies on integrating the social dimension in our existing health and safety processes (impact management) and on preventive approach (risk management)  (risk management) 

Monitoring

Improving incident monitoring tools and dashboards to improve visibility of the process .

Support

Close interaction between our operations and the social department to support implementation of new standards and methods.

Integration

Strengthening risk management through Community Safety Integrated Plans spanning all local operations and surrounding communities.
One of the outcomes from incorporating the Community dimension into our policy on managing health and safety, environmental and operational processes events was the introduction of a procedure for classifying high-consequence events, as is done for the other dimensions. The results from this process are summarized by a C-Pyramid based on the severity classification of each actual or potential event.

Social Incident Classification Pyramid

Community Safety Integrated Plans

Vale’s preventive efforts are bolstered by Community Safety Integrated  Plan (CSIP) based on territorial assessments that consolidate all of Vale's activities in a particular location for a comprehensive analysis. CSIPs are designed to enhance risk management by identifying safety hazards for the local population as a result of our operations and recommending preventive measures. These plans cover all operations planned for a given area under existing plans, projects, and protocols, helping to coordinate Community Safety efforts in that location. 

In 2024, we continued implementing and/or reviewing the Integrated Community Safety Plans. Multidisciplinary investigations were carried out, and corrective action plans were defined based on the accidents that occurred. Additionally, we began engaging in dialogue with partner companies to joint action in the territories, aiming to reduce the number of incidents. 

Commitment

The treatment of safety accidents involving injuries to community members received corporate support in 2022 when Vale established a commitment to reduce 40% of accidents involving community members by 2027. Injuries resulting from suicide are recorded, investigate, and treated, but were not counted towards the KPI.

Community safety event records¹

Year 2022 2023 2024 % Change (2023/2024)
Fatal injuries
16 
10
12
20%
Total events with injuries involving community members 
82
95
 98 3%
¹The data presented in the table above has been revised considering the withdrawal of Vale's operations in Indonesia (PTVI). The figures also do not share events resulting from suicide.
In 2024, 98 accidents involving community members were recorded, representing a 3% increase compared to the number of events in 2023. The majority of these incidents involved the company’s contractors. Of this total, unfortunately, 12 were fatalities. It is important to highlight that these are not occupational accidents, nor are they intended to assign blame or responsibility to those who caused the incidents. Additionally, events resulting from suicide and uncontrolled activities (those for which Vale does not have the formal right or responsibility to ensure that its health, safety, and environmental requirements are implemented and followed) are not included. 

Most of the incidents were related to vehicle collisions on public roads (80%). The remaining cases involved pedestrian run-overs, mostly on railway lines (9%), and other causes, such as unauthorized access to operational areas (11%). We are fully aware of the critical nature of these events and are working to assess root causes in order to prevent future occurrences, as well as to identify which mitigation actions have been successful so they can be strengthened and replicated.