At best, Latin America only has begun grappling with the environmental legacy of sloppy industrial-waste disposal. But a recent accord in Brazil’s São Paulo state could be taken as a sign of at least some progress. Under an agreement with the state government, 44 companies have committed a total of $1.1 million to begin cleaning up land where a contractor, state officials say, had carelessly disposed of the companies’ wastes. “This case is unprecedented because it’s the first time in Brazil that so many companies have pooled resources to clean up an area contaminated by their industrial wastes,” says Carolina Carvalho Ferreira Alves Nassa, a São Paulo state public prosecutor. “I can’t remember an instance in which more than a few companies got together... [Log in to read more]