Rosemont will destroy Santa Rita Mountains to export copper overseas

Arizona’s unrefined copper concentrate exports are soaring at the same time two foreign-owned, multinational mining companies are planning to construct the Rosemont and Resolution copper mines. The mines would be among the largest in the country, raising questions of whether most, if not all, of the copper would be exported.

Arizona has long been the nation’s leading copper-producing state. And for decades most of the copper concentrate extracted from sulfide ore bodies such as those found at the proposed Rosemont and Resolution mines was processed at giant furnaces called smelters. The smelters transformed copper concentrate into metal that could be further refined into products such as wire and tubing.

The smelters also were notorious for emitting high levels of air pollution and heavy metals including arsenic and lead. One by one, the smelters closed leaving the state today with only two located in the communities of Hayden and Miami.

At the same time, foreign investment in Arizona copper mines sharply increased with Grupo Mexico taking control of three Arizona mines through its Asarco subsidiary and the Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo Corp. purchasing a 28 percent share in Phoenix-based Freeport McMoRan’s Morenci mine, the largest copper mine in the United States.

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Posted in General, Hudbay, Trade, Transportation | 5 Comments

Pima County reaffirms resolution opposing Rosemont Mine

The Pima County Board of Supervisors on April 16 reaffirmed a 2007 resolution opposing construction of the proposed $1.9 billion Rosemont Copper Mine.

The 3-2 vote, which fell along party lines, included language to direct County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry to “take all necessary measures to protect the health, safety, and welfare of southern Arizonans” when it comes to the possible development of the massive open-pit mine in the Santa Rita Mountains southeast of Tucson, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

Toronto-based Hudbay Minerals Inc. last month received a Clean Water Act (CWA) permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers clearing way for the company to begin construction of what could become the third largest open-pit copper mine in the United States.

The three supervisors who voted in favor of the resolution said they may take future action to join legal challenges that have already been filed against the project, the Arizona Daily Star reported.

Late last month four conservation groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Army Corp’s decision to issue a CWA permit to Rosemont. Three Arizona Indian Tribes also filed a federal lawsuit on April 10 challenging the CWA permit. Continue reading

Posted in Clean Water Act, Hudbay, water | 3 Comments

Hudbay approves $122 million spending plan for “early works” at Rosemont

Hudbay Minerals, Inc. yesterday announced that it approved a $122 million “early works” spending plan for the Rosemont Copper Mine.

Hudbay stated the funds would be used for the following projects:

  • Funding the construction of a water pipeline and power transmission line to site, which are critical long-lead items that are necessary to initiate heavy civil works at site.
  • Advancing critical path engineering and geotechnical work to support long-lead procurement and de-risk the project schedule and cost estimate.
  • Archaeological site work to prepare key areas for construction.
  • Spending on permit-related mitigation activities and owner’s costs.

Hudbay announced the spending plan one-day after a coalition of four conservation groups filed a federal lawsuit challenging a decision by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to issue a Clean Water Act permit to Rosemont that is the final major permit needed in the contentious regulatory process. Continue reading

Posted in Clean Water Act, General, Hudbay, Litigation, water | 2 Comments

Hudbay seeking Rosemont Mine joint venture partner after receiving key federal Clean Water Act permit

Just days after obtaining a key federal Clean Water Act permit for its Rosemont open-pit copper project, Toronto-based Hudbay Minerals Inc. announced Wednesday it is seeking a new minority partner to take up to a 30 percent share in the $1.9 billion project.

“We expect there will be substantial interest in a minority stake given recent precedent transactions and Rosemont’s unique status as a world-class, shovel-ready copper project in the United States,” Alan Hair, Hudbay’s president and CEO, said in a statement.

The announcement comes at the same time Hudbay said it is ending its joint venture partnership with Korean-based United Copper and Moly, LLC (UCM), which holds a 7.95% share in the Rosemont project. UCM is jointly owned by Korea Resources Corporation, a South Korean government-controlled investment arm, and LG International Corp. Continue reading

Posted in Clean Water Act, Hudbay, Investors, water | 5 Comments

Hudbay has failed to provide legal justification for Clean Water Act permit, Natural Resources Committee chairman says

The chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee is warning that the Canadian mining company planning to construct the $1.9 billion Rosemont Mine has failed to provide government regulators with a plan to legally compensate for the massive environmental destruction the mine would create.

Toronto-based Hudbay Minerals Inc. is seeking permits to construct what would become the third largest open pit copper mine in the United States in the Santa Rita Mountains on the Coronado National Forest southeast of Tucson. The last remaining permit needed by Hudbay is a Clean Water Act permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The permit would allow Hudbay to destroy more than 2,500 acres of Coronado National Forest, obliterating streams and washes under hundreds of millions of tons of waste rock and mine tailings. Hudbay has proposed a controversial plan to mitigate the damage that  Federal, State and County agencies, as well as conservation groups, have asserted does not meet regulatory standards.

Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva and Arizona Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, in whose Congressional District the mine is located, warned the Corps in a Jan. 23 letter  that Hudbay’s mitigation plan does not meet legal muster. Continue reading

Posted in Clean Water Act, Hudbay, water | 4 Comments