3 GOP lawmakers voice opposition to mine project
By Tony Davis
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
DID YOU KNOW ...
The proposed open-pit copper mine would be built on the Rosemont Ranch, a 20,000-acre cattle ranch about 30 miles south of Tucson.
"Rosemont is anticipated to have one of our country's largest unmined copper, molybdenum and silver deposits," says Rosemont Copper's Web site.
Mining companies have been intrigued by the deposits for decades. Among those investing in the site, according to the Web site, Banner Mining Co. acquired most claims by the late 1950s. Anaconda Mining Co. bought them in 1963. Asarco bought the land in 1988, then sold to real estate interests in 2004. Augusta bought it in 2005.
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Three state lawmakers representing the area where an open-pit copper mine could be built in the Santa Rita Mountains came out against it Friday.
Senate President Tim Bee and Reps. Marian McClure and Jonathan Paton, District 30 Republicans, said they oppose the Rosemont Mine because of its effects on neighbors, air, land and water supply.
They asked the U.S. Forest Service to commission an independent review of relevant data on those issues — a request that an official of the mining company called political grandstanding.
The legislators join several local governments in opposing the planned mine, which an economic study has said would create nearly 500 local jobs and inject $256 million annually into Pima County's economy.
Augusta Resource Corp. plans to develop a mile-wide, nearly 3,000-foot-deep copper mine in the mountains south of Tucson.
The Pima and Santa Cruz county boards of supervisors — as well as city and town councils representing Tucson, Sahuarita, Oro Valley and Patagonia — have passed resolutions opposing the Rosemont mine. They've also asked Congress to support the withdrawal of all national forest lands in the two counties from mineral use.
The Forest Service is reviewing Augusta's mine proposal, a process that will take longer than two years and has stretched a decade for other, recently approved Arizona mines.
"Our primary objection is the negative impact this operation could have on our residents and local tourist economy," Bee said Friday in a written statement. "Specifically, we are concerned about the noise, air and water pollution in addition to increased truck traffic on our local highways."
Augusta Vice President Jamie Sturgess said he would have preferred the legislators to take a neutral stance, "saying, 'Let's wait and see what the environmental impact statement shows.' That's how the system is designed."
"I am extremely disappointed that the political leadership in this area would so prematurely dismiss the value of 500 quality jobs and $800 million local investment and would rather import 10 percent of the nation's copper than to produce it here in Arizona," said Sturgess, Augusta's vice president for projects and the environment.
He said the Rosemont mine could produce 10 percent of what the United States produces in copper and 6 percent of what it uses each year.
"This is obviously politically motivated grandstanding that couldn't have possibly been the fruit of an environmental analysis or knowledge of the economic opportunities," he said.
The Forest Service is now determining what additional information it needs from Augusta before it can start a formal environmental review, said Beverly Everson, a geologist for the agency.
Bee said the legislators decided to join the opposition after legislative staff members attended public forums on the mine, and after being approached by local residents and the environmental group Save the Santa Ritas.
"The water concerns kind of outweigh the economic benefit," Bee said. "Already in Green Valley we have what I consider water pollution in our aquifer. We have water-supply issues and tremendous growth of homes. We believe there are too many reasons to be concerned about the mine."
The legislators decided to seek independent review of the Augusta proposal after concluding that a number of technical details are missing from the company's plans filed with the Forest Service, said Bee and Wendy Baldo, a staffer on the state Senate Natural Resources Committee.
Everson referred questions about an independent review to Coronado National Forest Supervisor Jeanine Derby, who was unavailable Friday for comment.
The Forest Service is mainly seeking more information right now from Augusta about water-related issues and hydrology, Everson said.
DID YOU KNOW ...
The proposed open-pit copper mine would be built on the Rosemont Ranch, a 20,000-acre cattle ranch about 30 miles south of Tucson.
"Rosemont is anticipated to have one of our country's largest unmined copper, molybdenum and silver deposits," says Rosemont Copper's Web site.
Mining companies have been intrigued by the deposits for decades. Among those investing in the site, according to the Web site, Banner Mining Co. acquired most claims by the late 1950s. Anaconda Mining Co. bought them in 1963. Asarco bought the land in 1988, then sold to real estate interests in 2004. Augusta bought it in 2005.
● Contact reporter Tony Davis at 806-7746 or tdavis@azstarnet.com.
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