Here We Go Again?
A recent entry on the schedule for Brazil’s Supreme Court (STF) revealed that a national asbestos litigation saga may finally be heading towards a resolution. According to the timetable, a decision is expected in September on the case referred to as the Direct Action of Unconstitutionality (ADI) 6200. The lawsuit was initiated by the National Association of Labor Prosecutors (Associação Nacional dos Procuradores do Trabalho) against a Goiás State exemption allowing the mining of asbestos for export purposes in contravention of a 2017 STF verdict banning the commercial exploitation of asbestos.
Ever since the landmark 2017 ruling – Brazil is the only country to implement an asbestos ban through judicial means – there have been numerous lawsuits, legislative amendments and political maneuvers to prolong the economic life of the Cana Brava mine, the country’s only operational chrysotile (white) asbestos mine. Last month, total output for 2026 was predicted at ~172,000 tonnes, making Brazil the world’s fourth largest asbestos producer.1 There’s a lot riding on the Court’s decision for Eternit, S.A., the owner of the SAMA subsidiary operating the mine, as well as for the town of Minaçu where the mine is located.
News about the Court’s agenda for September, brought back memories of other dates for which we had great expectations:
- On July 19, 2019, a Direct Action of Unconstitutionality (ADI) 6200 was filed against the Goiás State law allowing asbestos mining despite the 2017 Supreme Court verdict.
- On April 17, 2020, the case was deleted from the STF’s virtual fast-track agenda.
- From February 10-17, 2023, STF proceedings for ADI 6200 opened with a virtual plenary session. On February 17, STF President Rosa Weber made an official request, as a result of which the virtual plenary was halted.
- Proceedings scheduled in this case for June 9-16, 2023 were stopped on June 10 at the request of Judge Gilmar Mendes.
- Proceedings in a virtual plenary session set for October 18 to 25, 2024, were halted on October 22 at the request of rapporteur Judge Alexandre de Morae.
- On March 13, 2025, the STF resumed the trial of ADI 6200 but no decision was reached pending a review by Judge Nunes Marques.
- On October 27, 2025, Judges Nunes Marques and Gilmar Mendes submitted their votes during the virtual plenary trial of ADI 6200; on the same day, Judge André Mendonça requested a review and the trial was suspended again.
- On April 10-17, 2026, the trial resumed virtually but STF Judge Luiz Fux requested a review of the case files and proceedings were postponed.
With each hearing, we were poised for good news; each time we were disappointed.
 Members of the ABAN Ban Asbestos Mission to Brazil outside the Supreme Court in Brasilia on April 24, 2019 protesting Brazilian asbestos exports to Asia. Picture from IBAS archive. |
One might be forgiven for expressing pessimism about the outcome this time round. There is, however, a glimmer of hope that a decision might finally be reached which will mandate that the federal asbestos ban applies to all 26 Brazilian States, including Goiás, and the federal district.
In the past, rhetoric from vested interests bombarding Supreme Court Judges bemoaned the economic repercussions of an asbestos ban for the people and town of Minaçu. The town was, after all, an asbestos company town built and owned by the S.A. Mineração de Amianto company (SAMA); SAMA has traditionally been referred to by residents and workers as the “mother of Minaçu.”
 The slogan at the top of the monument says: “Seja bem vindo a Minaçu capital do amianto.” The English translation is: “Welcome to Minaçu, the asbestos capital.” The historic landmark is sited in a prominent position at the entrance to the city. Photo courtesy of the Brazilian Association of the Asbestos-Exposed (ABREA). |
The reason for the “cautious optimism” regarding the Court’s long-delayed decision on the unconstitutionality of the Goiás exemption is the discovery of valuable natural resources in Minaçu by the Serra Verde Mining Company, which is in the process of being taken over by the US-government backed company: USA Rare Earth. The company’s Pela Ema mine, which began commercial mining operations in 2024, is currently the only large-scale producer of all four critical magnetic rare earths – neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, and terbium –from an ionic clay deposit outside of Asia.
Although the extraction of these rare earth elements currently generates about the same number of local jobs as do the much-reduced operations at the SAMA asbestos mine (~350), Minaçu Mayor Carlos Alberto Leréia believes the new industry “will bring enormous wealth to the city.”2 Whether it will remains to be seen but what cannot be denied is that the asbestos industry is no longer the only commercial driver of the municipal economy.
With that in mind, one can do as we did before… wait and see and hope that this time, the result will be one which will save lives not only in Brazil but also in those countries to which Brazilian asbestos is exported. Fingers crossed!
September 4, 2026
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1 The value of these exports is ~US$90 million dollars.
United States Geological Survey. Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Asbestos.
https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-asbestos.pdf
2 Pooler, M. The old asbestos town at the heart of the rare earths race. August 24, 2026.
[Subscription site]: https://www.ft.com/content/a40460fa-88fa-437f-99c6-828b2636f300?syn-25a6b1a6=1
Seta, I. Brazil’s last asbestos miners are switching to rare earth minerals. Can they offer a brighter future? July 1, 2025.
https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2025/jul/01/minerals-brazil-asbestos-miners-rare-earths-transition-mining
Teixeira, F. Beset by legal battles, Brazil asbestos town eyes a safer future. January 25, 2022.
https://www.reuters.com/article/world/beset-by-legal-battles-brazil-asbestos-town-eyes-a-safer-future-idUSKBN2JZ1GM/
