In 2020, we published our Mining and Metallurgical Waste Management Policy, establishing guidelines on enhanced waste management and committing investments for our transition to an innovative circular mining approach that can unlock new value chains and maximize value from waste.  

This policy is revised at least every three years or as otherwise needed and is structured around three areas of action: implementing best optimization and processing practices at each mining stage; investing in R&D and technology, including new value chains for tailings and slag; and implementing dry processing where permitted by geological conditions.  

Our dry processing model utilizes the natural moisture contained in the ore. We perform monthly reviews of data on mining - metallurgical waste production, disposal and value recovery, with reports generated for both internal and external stakeholders. 

Where no value recovery option is available, tailings are disposed of in dams in accordance with Vale’s Dam Safety and Geotechnical Mining Structures Policy. See here for further information on dam management and dam safety. 

Vale continues to invest in solutions to reduce our dependence on new dams and additional dam raises. In 2023, 69% of the ore produced by Vale was natural moisture. In addition, of the remaining 31% of tailings generated, around half (15.5%) were filtered and disposed of in dry piles or pits. Finally, only 15.5 % of Vale’s iron ore production  required tailings to be deposited in dams. In short, Vale has advanced with technology and safety in recent years, so that 84.5% of Vale’s iron ore production did not depend on dams for tailings disposal.