resolution copper
on november 18, resolution copper mining reached a milestone at its resolution copper project in arizona, ...
resolution copper is working with regulators and the community to develop one of the world’s largest untapped deposits of copper .
this partially desert state is home to rio tinto’s resolution copper project, one of the world’s largest undeveloped copper deposits .
“back in arizona i’m hearing you’re supporting resolution copper, ” nosie recalled saying .
rcm will use the block caving mining... - resolution copper | facebook
makes the federal lands available to resolution copper for use for mining and related activities .
the international copper study group said worldwide demand for copper had exceeded supply in each of the last five years. resolution copper expects the mine to produce as much as a billion pounds of copper annually, about a quarter of the nation' s copper requirement .
resolution copper mining has sunk a 7000 - feet deep shaft mine near superior that it hopes will produce billions of tons of copper .
this article was updated april 14, 2015, to include the response of resolution copper .
resolution copper mining (rcm) is a limited liability company owned 55 per cent by resolution copper company, a rio tinto plc subsidiary, and 45 per cent by bhp copper, inc. , a bhp - billiton plc subsidiary .
resolution copper estimates a two - mile wide crater will form at oak flat due to the mining .
resolution copper’s mike betom looks at the issues that matter most to the local communities surrounding our project .
resolution copper says a mile - wide copper ore body 7, 000 feet below the ground outside superior is among the largest and richest in the world .
exchange of 2, 422 acres of public land (known as the oak flat parcel) with resolution copper mining, llc (resolution copper), in return for 5, 344 acres elsewhere in arizona .
the east field of the resolution copper mine, outside superior, ariz. on april 27, 2016 .
this document summarizes the resolution copper project and land exchange environmental impact statement (eis) alternatives development process .
how resolution copper is aiding arizona’s farmers in irrigating their crops, and helping preserve the state’s water supply .
taplin of resolution copper insisted the company was doing everything possible to limit potential harm caused by the mine .
resolution' s work today is limited to land it controls and test drilling for copper outside the withdrawn land .
it was a thrill to get a chance to check out the outstanding resolution copper mine project in superior, ariz .
the resolution copper deposit lies more than a mile beneath the surface and the most viable way to recover the resolution resource is by going underground, using a process called block caving .
resolution then “banks” the equivalent groundwater as credits which it can use in future. the net result is that the groundwater used is the same as if resolution copper hadn’t been involved .
we’re very confident that resolution copper concentrate will be hitting the market just at the right time as we see copper prices starting to head in the right direction ,
he said .
the magma copper company along with the resolution copper deposit was acquired by bhp copper, inc. in 1996. shortly thereafter, bhp closed operations at the magma mine, but exploration of the resolution deposit continued. in 2001, kennecott exploration, a subsidiary of rio tinto, signed an earn - in agreement with bhp, and initiated a drilling program to further explore the deposit. based on the drilling conducted to date, the resolution copper deposit is one of the largest undeveloped copper deposits in the world with an estimated copper resource of 1. 7 billion metric tons at an average grade of 1. 52 percent copper .
terminates the authorization to undertake such activities in the oak flat withdrawal area when the withdrawal area land is conveyed to resolution copper .
documents pertaining to the proposed land exchange between the federal government and resolution copper mining, llc, are available on this website .
resolution copper is working with regulators and the community to develop one of the world’s largest untapped deposits of copper. we are currently building the foundation for a modern mine that will set industry standards .
through exploratory drilling, resolution copper mining has pulled 120 core samples — at a cost of $ 1. 5 million each — from the underground ore body, which ranges from 1. 5 to 3. 5 percent copper, resolution project director andrew taplin said .
resolution copper' s no. 10 shaft in superior, arizona is the deepest single lift mine shaft in the us ...
still, what bothers many here is that resolution copper may be able to mine the land with little regard for the environmental impact .
they are among roughly 370 workers employed by resolution copper mining and its contractors, and they are building what could become the largest copper mine in the country. but they have yet to mine anything .
and she plans to keep it that way by asking visitors to leave whenever they bring up an uncomfortable subject: the resolution copper mine .
“we have also heard from many native american employees and contractors that work with resolution copper, who have told us of the desperate need for economic development and jobs in the copper triangle, ” he said .
tony acosta, a former miner whose family has been in the business nearly 60 years, said copper once gave the town stability and a sense of unity. but the resolution copper project has changed all that .
under the new federal law, in exchange for the 2, 400 acres of copper - rich land from tonto national forest, resolution copper will also give taxpayers 5, 000 acres of environmentally - sensitive land .
he said international mining companies can' t be trusted. proponents mention that the project will lower copper prices, but the copper concentrate pulled from the mine likely would be shipped overseas to be refined into copper .
this document includes the appendices for the report that summarizes the resolution copper project and land exchange environmental impact statement (eis) alternatives development process .
richins said resolution copper supports the coalition' s big - picture vision, and is
100 percent
willing to support the effort financially .
waltz’s discovery drew others to the region, who sought their own fortunes in gold, and silver and copper too. mining boomed, and in 1912, the magma copper mine started up, supporting the construction of the town of superior, where the resolution copper project is based today .
a controversial land exchange passed as part of a defense - spending bill late last year will allow resolution copper company to begin mining a low - grade body of copper ore located 7, 000 feet below oak flat .
resolution copper contracted the nonprofit the nature conservancy to manage one of those parcels of along the san pedro river. resolution copper' s representative in the arrangement, celeste andersen, told america tonight that it offers vital habitat and water for wildlife and rare birds, making it a conservation priority .
located in arizona, the resolution copper project is one of the largest undeveloped copper resources in the world. it’s set to produce a billion pounds of copper per year over its 40 - year mine life, and will create about 1, 400 jobs as well as 2, 300 indirect jobs .
jose lopez walks along a rail track last week in a tunnel 1, 200 feet below the surface of the east plant at superior’s resolution copper mining .
the magma mine ran until 1995, the same year as the resolution copper deposit was discovered, deep below that historic mine. but before resolution copper could begin sinking an exploratory shaft to assess the deposit, it needed to remove the water that had naturally accumulated in the magma mine since it was abandoned .
resolution copper mining llc respects both viewpoints regarding whether the site is sacred, spokesman bill tanner said in an email. resolution is jointly owned by u. k. - based rio tinto group and australia - based bhp billiton ltd .
but the squeeze hasn' t affected resolution' s prospects, taplin said .
resolution copper’s proposed mining method — block - cave mining — will extract a huge amount of rock from underneath oak flat, eventually resulting in a 2 - mile - wide crater as the surface collapses into the underground void, resolution says .
before the water leaves the treatment plant, and when it arrives at its agricultural destination, resolution copper tests it to make sure it meets strict safety standards .
on one side is resolution copper mining, which is owned by the british - australian company rio tinto group and melbourne, australia - based bhp billiton ltd .
open pit mining is the way copper mining in the copper triangle and across arizona is typically done. resolution copper would use an underground mining method called block cave mining. this method has been around for decades and has both environmental and safety advantages, making it most suitable and economical for large, deep ore bodies .
instructs resolution copper to surrender, without compensation, the rights held by it under mining and other u. s. laws to commercially extract minerals under apache leap .
at the bottom of resolution copper mine’s shaft no. 10, pumps push water to a treatment plant on the surface. water at the bottom is 175 degrees .
what should the u. s. forest service analyze as part of its environmental impact statement on the resolution copper mine? submit your comments by july 18 to :
dave richins, resolution copper' s adviser for external affairs, said it was a
no - brainer
to work with the coalition to open those areas .
the resolution copper mine, outside superior, ariz. , is expected to generate $ 61 billion over its lifetime and create 3, 700 direct and indirect jobs .
the resolution mine will be able to withstand fluctuations in the market, taplin said. plus, as fewer copper mines open, or as more shut down, global copper supply will likely decline, leading to a rise in prices, he said .
resolution copper is committed to using arizona’s vital water resources wisely, making the most out of every drop through techniques that reduce consumption, recycle wastewater and protect groundwater sources .
not all arizona residents are against resolution copper' s plan. bill vogler, a resident of superior, arizona, is one of the group' s biggest supporters .
the copper triangle has a rich mining legacy, and we’re working to restore the historic magma copper mine’s underground operations while remediating its environmental impacts on the land around superior .
get the latest information about companies associated with copper investing delivered directly to your inbox .
taplin, from resolution, confirmed this. there are just three smelters in the u. s. that could refine the copper, two in arizona that are unlikely to have capacity for more copper, and one owned by rio tinto in utah. the resolution concentrate could either be sent to utah or out of the country, he said .
earlier in 2017, cwg hired southwest groundwater consultants to carry out independent, quarterly testing of groundwater quality in areas associated with the proposed resolution copper mine. the first community monitoring event took place at the end of february, with both the consultants and resolution copper splitting the samples from each well and running their own tests for the same constituents .
tribes in arizona and new mexico have submitted letters to congress and the obama administration objecting to legislation that turned over 2, 400 acres of the tonto national forest — including oak flat — to resolution copper, in exchange for 5, 300 acres resolution owns .
under a new law, resolution copper will swap roughly 7. 8 square miles of land scattered across arizona for roughly 3. 8 square miles of tonto national forest, which includes oak flat. the new legislation will open up oak flat for copper mining .
resolution and the coalition have worked out a licensing agreement that essentially will amount to climbers agreeing to waive liability in exchange for access to resolution land after the swap is complete .
a spokesman for resolution copper, jointly owned by two foreign mining giants, said this week the company would not comment on the land exchange until the senate votes on it .
that prospect has won the company plenty of supporters in town. resolution copper currently employs around 300 workers in the state, including john allison, a miner with six children .
resolution will take copper from a zone where temperatures run 180 degrees fahrenheit. with help from remotely controlled machines, miners will set off explosions to shatter sections of the deposit .
the resolution copper mining general plan of operations proposes development of an underground copper mine located near the town of superior, arizona. the project would occur on a mixture of private, state and national forest lands. the resolution copper project would create one of the largest copper mines in the united states, with an estimated surface disturbance of 6, 951 acres (approximately 11 square miles). it would also be one of the deepest mines in the united states, with mine workings extending 7, 000 feet beneath the surface .
as part of the deal, resolution copper will swap roughly 7. 8 square miles of land scattered across arizona for roughly 3. 8 square miles of tonto national forest, which includes oak flat. the new legislation will open up oak flat for copper mining .
prohibits anything in this act from interfering with, limiting, or otherwise impairing the unpatented mining claims or rights currently held by resolution copper on the federal land or in any way changing, diminishing, qualifying, or otherwise impacting resolution copper' s rights and ability to conduct activities on such land under such claims and u. s. general mining laws .
sen. john mccain in the # 10 shaft, the deepest mine shaft in the u. s. at 6, 943 feet, which resolution copper dug on private land .
the planned rosemont copper mine just south of tucson isn’t the only mining controversy in arizona .
the pressure is building, meanwhile, on kirkpatrick. resolution copper ran a series of ads in local newspapers telling kirkpatrick, “we’re counting on you to help pass this bill now. ”
( sec. 6) directs resolution copper to file annually with the secretary of the interior a report that indicates the quantity of valuable locatable minerals produced in commercial quantities from the federal land. requires resolution copper to make value adjustment payments to the united states based upon locatable minerals produced from such land. requires such secretary to make such reports available to the state of arizona .
the record of resolution' s parent companies wasn' t exactly stellar coming into this project .
requires resolution copper to agree to pay, without compensation, costs that are associated with the land exchange and any environmental review document completed pursuant to this section and agreed to by the secretary .
the international mining giant rio tinto got wind of the find and bought the mine. it then partnered with bhp - billiton to set up a subsidiary, which became known as resolution copper .
digging for copper. underneath the surface is one of the world’s largest untapped copper deposits — by some estimates, enough to supply a quarter of america’s annual demand for more than 50 years .
but the copper ore lies outside town limits and the company doesn’t need superior’s blessing to proceed .
according to usa today, resolution copper —a 55% - 45% joint venture between rio tinto and bhp— is expected to present a step - by - step strategy on how it plans to mine the copper ore, dispose of tailings and other waste, and bring water to the site .
terminates such withdrawal: (1) upon the completion of the land exchange, or (2) if resolution copper notifies the secretary in writing that it has elected to withdraw from such exchange .
in the meantime, resolution copper says the majority of residents in and around superior are in favor of the project. chavez and the mine' s opponents say the town is on their side .
wood, able to speak freely now that he’s retired, says the forest service has a clear rules to permit mining on federal lands, but resolution copper’s new legislation short - circuits that process .
based in arizona’s famous copper corridor, the resolution copper mine is currently in its pre - feasibility stage. the plan, to be presented to the u. s. forest service on friday, is only the first step in a lengthy environmental review of the vast mine by the federal government .
carly leonida talks community engagement, new technologies and renewable energy with the team at resolution ...
“the resolution copper mine will be the flagship underground mine in the u. s. , ” he said. “it’s critical we share the benefits of this project with our local and regional community. ”
resolution copper invests in mine despite obstacles the project has cost $ 1. 2 billion so far and will take perhaps five times that amount in additional preparation work. check out this story on urltoken urltoken
closure costs added another $ 800 million to the world’s number one miner’s most disastrous acquisition to date. rio tinto became the joint venture partner on resolution copper as a result of these write - offs .
since 2005 resolution copper has been trying to arrange a land swap deal with the federal government to start mining. so far, eleven versions of a land - exchange bill have been introduced in congress .
resolution copper mining llc filed a reply in support of its motion for summary judgment on claims asserted in consolidated lawsuits it has intervened in, which were brought by the san carlos apache tribe ...
the state’s economy is in the doldrums, and the copper triangle region in the heart of rep .
the measure would see the federal government give resolution copper 2, 400 acres of the tonto national forest in exchange for 5, 500 acres of ecologically valuable property across arizona. usually, land exchange bills move through congress swiftly and without much fanfare. but the copper basin jobs act has been an exception .
but critics say the move allows the company to privatize the land and make an end run around critical environmental and cultural protections. what’s more resolution copper can’t promise that any of the copper produced by the mine will remain in the united states – which raises the question: how does this help national defense ?
bill vogel retired to superior eight years ago. an avid hiker and outdoorsman, he says he joined a working group put together by resolution copper to find out more about the company’s plan in the community. today, he is one of the company’s biggest supporters and the head of the superior copper alliance .
as opposition to the land - exchange deal that gave control of the apache sacred site of oak flat to resolution copper mining intensifies, a protest march has passed through new york city and arrived in washington .
resolution copper’s proposed mine will be deep underground, so it won’t have to use the quantities of water needed by open - pit mines to control dust. instead, the main uses for water will be to cool the mine’s interior, where rock temperatures can reach 70°c, and to process the copper extracted. the concentrator, which will be used to pull copper out of the rock, will use recycled water .
resolution copper is already making preparations to mine underneath the oak flats campground, expanding its existing shafts for the day it’ll be able to start harvesting the ore that lies about 7, 000 feet below the surface .
the gaping mouth of resolution copper mining’s no. 10 shaft is 28 feet across and opens into a sheer drop of nearly 7, 000 feet, making it the deepest continuous mine shaft in the united states .
there is no doubt that mining changes the landscape. at resolution copper, we’re committed to protecting the land as well as the water and air surrounding it while we operate, and once our work is complete .
but oak flat also sits on top of one of the world’s largest deposits of copper ore. resolution copper mining, a subsidiary of british - australian mining conglomerate rio tinto, has sought ownership of the land for a decade, lobbying congress to enact special legislation on its behalf more than a dozen times since 2005 .
the area around superior, arizona has a long mining history starting with discovery of copper at the silver queen mine in 1875, 37 years before arizona became a state and 30 years before the u. s. forest service was founded. the magma mine, located in the town of superior, started production in 1910 and operated until 1996. in 1972, magma geologists recognized the potential for a deep copper deposit in an area south of the magma mine and exploration commenced. in 1995, the magma copper company discovered the resolution copper deposit east of superior and 1. 2 miles south of the magma mine. the resolution copper deposit is not exposed at the surface, and lies a minimum of 3, 300 feet below the surface .
authorizes the secretary to issue to resolution copper special use permits that allow it to carry out underground activities (other than the commercial extraction of minerals) under the surface of apache leap that would not disturb the surface .
prohibits this section' s provisions from imposing additional restrictions on mining activities carried out by resolution copper adjacent to, or outside of, the apache leap area beyond those otherwise applicable to mining activities on privately owned land .
the resolution copper project, jointly owned by rio tinto and bhp billiton, could finally be moving forward. a bill that would secure key land for the project is set to pass in the us senate next week .
but because oak flat’s copper is low - grade ore, resolution insists that block cave mining is the only economically feasible technique. “that’s the method that’s been selected based on what god put there, ” peacey says .
bills in 2005 and 2006 did not pass due to lack of action, but news broke in late 2006 that renzi was being investigated for corruption. he was accused of blocking the land swap unless resolution purchased a parcel owned by a business associate to include in the swap. he assured resolution officials the deal would pass if his friend' s land was included. resolution copper refused the deal. but the saga cast suspicion on the project .
resolution, which in 2004 acquired the shuttered magma mine operation, has so far spent more than $ 1 billion expanding the mine, including build - out of two mine shafts. before it even begins extracting copper, resolution will have spent about $ 8 billion on mine construction, including finishing an existing shaft and adding four more .
( sec. 5) requires resolution copper, upon receipt of title to the federal land, to convey to the secretary and secretary of the interior the non - federal land that was determined to be acceptable to them .
water and mining go hand in hand, just like water and farming. for the last decade, resolution copper has worked in partnership with local farmers, to help both sides meet their water needs in this arid state .
oak flat sits 7, 000 feet above what resolution says is one of the largest copper deposits in the world. the company plans to break ground on the mining operation by mid - 2020, according to its website .
some opponents are concerned about the impact a proposed copper mine would have on superior' s landmark apache leap .
spread out over the 1. 7 billion - ton ore body, it' s a lot of copper .
resolution copper co. , a us - based company owned by giants rio tinto (asx, lon: rio) and bhp (asx: bhp), is fine tuning details to submit a plan to the federal government this week, which will detail how it would run what it could be north america' s largest copper mine .
securing ownership of mineral rights is an aspect of the mining process that generally occurs during the prospecting or exploration phases. on national forest lands, this process often involves locating mining claims. however, mining claims cannot be located on national forest lands withdrawn from mineral entry. resolution copper has been pursuing a land exchange to acquire national forest land northeast of the resolution copper deposit for approximately 10 years, because mining claims cannot be located on that land parcel .
resolution’s safety record has been better than the national industry average, data from the mine safety and health administration show .
the appraisal will be conducted by a government appraiser in accordance with federal regulations and nationally recognized appraisal standards. once the appraisal is complete, it will be made public. an additional provision of the ndaa requires resolution copper to make annual payments to the federal government during mine production in the event that the appraisal undervalues the copper resource on exchanged lands .
in december 2014, congress passed, and the president approved, the national defense authorization act (ndaa) for fiscal year 2015. section 3003 of the ndaa authorizes a land exchange between resolution copper and the united states. the purpose of section 3003 of the ndaa is to “authorize, direct, facilitate, and expedite the exchange of land between resolution copper and the united states”. as an agency within the department of agriculture, the forest service will administer the land exchange .
resolution expects it will take five years to get mine approval, and new shaft construction will take at least five more .
before mining begins, resolution must set aside funds to dismantle infrastructure and reclaim and revegetate the land after the mine closes .
and resolution has agreed to provide access to popular climbing areas called atlantis and the pond that were going to be inaccessible .
diefenderfer hopes resolution will help create new access to climbing areas. the coalition and resolution recently announced that a feasibility study is being done for a trail to apache leap that also would include building a system of mountain - biking and hiking trails .
despite the money invested, resolution has a variety of obstacles to overcome that range from
minor
details like providing cool air to the steamy depths of a shaft to the difficult task of persuading congress to allow access to the copper deposit .
under the terms of a deal approved by the u. s. government in december, phoenix - based resolution copper will take control of 2, 400 copper - rich acres in and around oak flat. in return, the company will transfer about 5, 300 acres of privately owned parcels of conservation land throughout arizona to the u. s. forest service .
copper output from the mine, to begin production in 2021, is projected to meet 25% of the internal demand .
southeast arizona land exchange and conservation act of 2013 - (sec. 4) authorizes and directs the secretary of agriculture (usda) (the secretary), if resolution copper mining, llc offers to convey specified parcels of non - federal land in gila, yavapi, maricopa, coconino, pinal, and / or santa cruz counties, arizona, that are acceptable to the secretary or the secretary of the interior, to convey certain federal land in pinal county, arizona, to resolution copper .
the resolution copper project is in what’s known as the pioneer mining district. the district has been at the heart of arizona’s mining industry since 1863, when prospector jacob waltz laid claim to gold in a patch of desert 95 kilometres east of phoenix .
roy chavez, a former mayor of superior, ariz. , and a miner himself, says resolution copper’s method of extraction is harmful to the environment. a company spokesman insists it is eco - friendly. (anna jeffrey / for the times )
resolution copper is a subsidiary of british - australian mining giant, rio tinto. after initially declining to speak to america tonight, project manager andrew taplin agreed to an interview after our story was published. he defended the mine as an economic boon .
after power generation, agriculture and household use, mining is one of the us economy’s biggest users of water. a critical challenge for resolution copper, therefore, is to balance the needs of a potential future operation which could supply up to 25 per cent of the copper that north america requires, with the demands for water by local communities, agriculture, and other industry .
in 2013 resolution copper filed a mine plan of operations (mpo) with the u. s. forest service. it outlines plans for a proposed mining facility in the area of the former magma copper mine near the town of superior, 65 miles east of phoenix. if approved, the mine will produce copper concentrate through a well - established underground mining method known as “block cave mining” used at more than 20 mining operations around the world, many of which have been in continuous operation for decades .
featherstone said that resolution is simply spending money on the project in hopes that it will encourage the government to permit the work .
ross and his spokesman did not respond to additional questions seeking examples of problems that occurred between resolution and permit - issuing agencies .
much of that opposition focuses on how resolution copper plans to extract the ore, using a relatively new practice called
block cave
mining. unlike open - pit mining, which extracts ore from above, block - cave mining captures ore from below .
vicky peacey, resolution’s senior manager of environment, permitting and communities, said the title transfer does not equate to permission to mine .
resolution' s parent company rio tinto group says it plans to cut $ 2 billion from its budget over the next two years .
resolution' s preferred mine - tailings area is above queen valley, visible from the arizona trail and boyce thompson arboretum state park .
“it is essential that we have sustainable water management strategies that would support our operations and meet the needs of the community, and that we protect our fresh water resources and the natural habitats they support, ” said resolution copper environmental manager, dr. casey mckeon .
but as the ore deposits collapse, the ground above subsides. resolution copper has conceded that working the area below oak flat, a rare desert riparian area four miles outside superior, will create a crater more than 2 miles wide and 1, 000 feet deep .
uncertainty in copper pricing is the nature of a highly volatile market, said john tilton, a colorado school of mines mining economist .
the morenci mine, in southeast arizona, may soon lose its status as one of north america' s largest producer of copper .
the chairman of the nearby san carlos apache tribe, the inter - tribal council of arizona, former miners and environmentalists vehemently oppose the land exchange. they’re up against resolution copper co. , its congressional allies and a town hungry for the jobs the mine would bring .
the southeast arizona land exchange and conservation act (the “act”), p. l. 113 - 291 authorizes and directs the secretary of agriculture to enter into a land exchange with resolution copper mining, llc, superior, arizona 85173, telephone: (520) 689 - 3456, (“resolution”) on the terms and conditions and according to the procedures set forth in the act (the “land exchange”) .
rio tinto - along with the australian mining company bhp billiton, which owns a 45 percent stake in resolution - says it has spent 16 years and $ 1. 3 billion on the project, including a decade acquiring acreage in the tonto national forest overlying the copper deposit .
the ore body the company seeks to mine is a deep - seated porphyry copper deposit located under the now inactive magma mine. rio has reported an inferred resource of 1. 624 billion tonnes containing 1. 47 per cent copper, at depths exceeding 1, 300 metres .
the resolution copper project is a proposed copper mine that can supply the world with the copper it needs to support ongoing technological and environmental innovation. the project will generate sustainable benefits for arizona, creating several thousand direct and indirect jobs and is expected to have an economic value of several billion dollars over the estimated life of the mine. the project team is working with policy makers, regulators, businesses, leaders, native american tribes, environmental advocates and the local community to develop the project safely and in a way that protects the area’s unique environment and cultural heritage .
it’s been a long time coming, but the resolution copper project, jointly owned by rio tinto (nyse: rio, asx: rio, lse: rio) and bhp billiton (nyse: bhp, asx: bhp, lse: blt), could finally be moving forward .
the access fund' s curt shannon talks about recreation uses in the oak flat area near superior, the site of a future copper mine .
a sign showing the depth of a tunnel in resolution copper mining’s no. 10 shaft is attached to pipes that move water at 580 gallons a minute to pumps that send it to a water treatment facility on the surface. the mine is not likely to be operational for another 10 years .
the mine' s opponents hold leverage over the project because, unfortunately for resolution, part of the underground copper deposit lies under a 740 - acre piece of national forest called oak flat that was withdrawn from mining activity in 1955 in part to protect 16 u. s. forest service campsites .
resolution copper project director andrew lye says that that the integrated water management process it has developed could provide a model for other parts of the world facing similar challenges. “by supplying water from alternative sources, we’re helping preserve the limited water supply in the region, and assisting the local farming community .
bhp billiton bought magma copper in 1996 for $ 3. 2 billion. the group’s san manual copper smelter in arizona was considered to be the jewel in the crown, but barely three years later bhp was forced to put it on care and maintenance and then shut it down completely in 2003 .
on the other side is a coalition of environmentalists, native americans and even former miners whose families have worked arizona' s copper triangle for generations .
copper is also vital in today' s modern world, he said, and it' s important to recognize the value the mine will create .
resolution is one of the largest undeveloped copper deposits in the world. resolution will be mined by underground methods at a mining rate of 120kt / d. in 2008, rio tinto announced that a $ 652 million pre - feasibility report for the project was scheduled for release in 2012. as at q4 2015, the pre - feasibility study was in progress. in november 2014, resolution completed the # 10 shaft to the depth of 6, 943ft, making it the country' s deepest shaft. total cost for the project up to date was quoted at us $ 1 billion... .
former rep. rick renzi (r - ariz .), kirkpatrick’s predecessor in the house, wanted land owned by one of his supporters included in the exchange. resolution copper balked, and the congressman was subsequently indicted, which ended his political career. the legislation, tainted by association, died .
on march 18, 2016, the tonto national forest issued a notice of intent to prepare an eis for the resolution copper project and land exchange. two separate but related components will be analyzed in the eis, as well as any necessary amendments to the tonto national forest land and resource management plan :
the a - shaped headframe holds the maryanne, or auxiliary basket, that allows people to be lowered into the resolution copper mine outside superior. the basket, which has two decks that hold 12 people each, can lower riders to 6, 820 feet below ground to a water - pumping station .
the resolution mine would also give the region a big economic boost, employing 1, 400 people and injecting $ 20 billion into public coffers, rio tinto estimates. it could supply the united states with a quarter of its copper, putting this small town at the epicenter of the global metals market .
if resolution’s copper deposit had been discovered under private land – and not a national forest – rio tinto might have been spared the federal review and faced only state regulators. instead, the u. s. forest service is leading the study, which will consider jobs, recreation, public health and wildlife .
the project' s numbers are staggering. the no. 10 shaft is as deep as 14 chase towers, the tallest building in phoenix. resolution plans four more like it. the mine would produce double the amount of copper generated by arizona' s largest mine today, the morenci mine in greenlee county .
once the land is in private ownership, nepa obligations no longer apply. the legislation specifies that the resolution copper will get the land within 60 days of the publication the environmental study, before the full nepa process is completed, limiting the forest service’s ability to modify the company’s mining plans in the public interest .
congress recently authorized an exchange of land so the multinational giant rio tinto can proceed with its resolution copper mine project in eastern arizona. the land to be conveyed to the company was taken from the apache people more than a century ago, but apache today continue to claim strong cultural and religious ties to the land .
the 2, 400 - acre land parcel near superior, ariz. , sits atop a massive copper deposit. foreign mining company resolution copper mining wants to establish a mine there. but the parcel also contains the oak flat campground, an area dotted with petroglyphs and historic and prehistoric sites, conservationists say. centuries - old oak trees, manzanita shrubs and other vegetation dominate the rocky landscape. the site is surrounded by canyons where streams flow and natural pools form in the rainy season .
in 2013, resolution copper submitted the proposed plan of operations for baseline hydrological and geotechnical data gathering activities. the purpose of this proposal is to collect hydrological, geochemical, and geotechnical data at the location of a potential tailings storage site. tailings are finely ground rock fragments that remain after the copper minerals have been removed from the rock by a process called flotation. the hydrological, geochemical, and geotechnical data will be used to support detailed design of the facility and associated environmental analyses .
in the meantime, the company is spending $ 50 million to reclaim the old magma mine site, which extends from north of downtown superior over apache leap. “doing the reclamation was a way for us to demonstrate to the community that we would take care of the environment, ” said david salisbury, resolution copper’s chief executive .
update july 28, 2015: the apache might be able to save some sacred land from becoming a mine site. in june, rep. raúl grijalva, d - ariz. , introduced the save oak flat act, which would strip the earlier land deal approved by congress from the national defense authorization act and stop resolution copper from completing the massive new copper mine. a week later, the national trust for historical preservation named oak flat to its annual list of most endangered historic places .
go 7, 000 feet underground with us and get a first - hand look at our work to safely develop one of the largest copper deposits in the world .
he envisions a transformation similar to what moab, utah, a one - time uranium - mining area, experienced when mountain bikers discovered it. he said resolution has agreed to a financial
settlement
with the coalition that will be paid once the environmental review is complete and title to the land is officially turned over to resolution .
superior, arizona, july 13 (reuters) - rio tinto’s proposed resolution copper mine in arizona would tunnel 7, 000 feet underground, where rocks radiate heat from the earth’s molten core. it would suck up enough water to supply a city and leave a crater a mile and a half wide and 1, 000 feet deep .
the massive project - which would be among the world’s largest copper mines - underscores the dangers of weakening america’s rigorous permitting process at a time mining endeavors are becoming increasingly complex and environmentally risky. and ross’s citation of resolution as a poster child for suffocating regulation reflects how far the trump administration is willing to go to advance economic growth .
“we’ve got a great story, ” resolution project director andrew taplin said. “we’re going to generate a lot of economic benefits and we want to tell our story. ”
“with that said, i am profoundly disappointed with the resolution copper provision, which has no regard for lands considered sacred by nearby indian tribes. the provision short circuits the long - standing and fundamental practice of pursuing meaningful government - to - government consultation with the 566 federally recognized tribes with whom we have a unique legal and trust responsibility .
its mining operation has a below - average rate of health and safety violations per inspection day — one measure the mining administration uses to gauge an operation’s safety. the national average for underground metal and non - metal mines over the past 15 months is 0. 66 violations per inspection day, while resolution copper’s rate is 0. 36 .
but just up the road, resolution copper has already completed work on a new exploratory shaft. reaching a depth of 7, 000 feet, it is the deepest shaft in north america. according to the company' s website, it will be used to gather information on the ore beneath, anticipating when the land will be theirs .
while the company supports permitting deadlines, at least one rio tinto official acknowledges that it would be hard to address the issues raised by the resolution mine in less than years .
it will also produce more than 1. 3 billion tons of mud - like waste tailings — basically dirt, often toxic, left over after the copper has been extracted .
for seven years, in fact, mccain had been trying to pass some version of the southeast arizona land exchange and conservation act, which would swap 2, 422 acres of the tonto national forest to the resolution copper mining company in exchange for a patchwork of privately owned conservation lands. but despite his best efforts, mccain’s 2012 attempt failed, too .
instructs resolution copper to submit a proposed mine plan of operations before starting production in commercial quantities of any valuable mineral from the federal land conveyed under this act, with the exception of any production from exploration and mine development shafts, adits, and tunnels needed to determine the feasibility and pilot plant testing of production or to access the ore body and tailing deposition areas .
peacey said post - mining reclamation is a priority for resolution, which has already spent $ 30 million cleaning up the mess left after superior’s magma mine closed in the mid - 1990s .
the project has cost $ 1. 2 billion so far and will take perhaps five times that amount in additional preparation work before a single ounce of copper is retrieved from the depths .
chavez' s family has been mining in arizona for nearly 100 years, and he spent much of his life below ground, digging out copper from the ore bodies that ring superior .
a federal government review of the project has drawn about 130, 000 comments from concerned constituents - more than 10 times the number who gave input on the smaller rosemont copper mine nearby .
one of the most controversial components of resolution copper’s project centers on how the company plans to extract the copper. eschewing a more traditional method of mining as too expensive, the company announced it will use a cheaper method called block cave mining, which will result in a crater two miles wide and up to 1, 000 feet deep, destroying the surface of the land. block cave mining will also generate nearly a cubic mile of mine waste, which the company proposes to leave on a parcel of forest service land, just outside the town of superior .
but featherstone believes resolution might do just that if grijalva’s bill passes. “that’s a lot of money to you and me, but not to them. their corporate culture is all about maximizing profits. ” if resolution doesn’t get what it wants, it could simply take a billion - dollar tax loss, says featherstone. “it’s just not that big of a deal to them. ”
- according to resolution, the mining operation would create about 3, 700 jobs during peak construction and about 1, 200 mining jobs during the project' s 40 - year life span .
remediation of the historic magma mine tailings is essential to reducing our overall environmental impact. to date, resolution copper has dedicated more than $ 40 million to clean up a 130 - acre site that once housed a copper concentrator and smelter. from now through 2020, we will spend approximately $ 40 million more to complete reclamation work. we continually seek to enhance our reclamation processes by integrating site remediation plans into life cycle planning for the project. our focus leads us toward innovative ways to ensure that the land we use is available for environmental and societal benefits in future .
notice of exchange proposal land - for - land exchange legal notice - december 2017 notice is hereby given that the forest service (fs), united states department of agriculture, and bureau of land management (blm), united states department of interior are evaluating the exchange of land with resolution copper mining llc (resolution), as directed by the southeast arizona land exchange and conservation act, p. l. 113 - 291, section 3003 (act). the federal lands under the jurisdiction of the fs that are being considered for exchange are described in the notice .
taplin said the land exchange
does not circumvent the nepa process .
resolution officials suggested that if the land swap was approved, the mine plan filed with the forest service could be amended.
resolution copper ( rcm ) is a joint venture owned by rio tinto and bhp billiton formed to develop and operate an underground copper mine near superior , arizona , u.s . the project targets a deep-seated porphyry copper deposit located under the now inactive magma mine . rio tinto has reported an inferred resource of 1.624 billion tonnes containing 1.47 percent copper and 0.037 percent molybdenum at depths exceeding 1,300 metres ( 0.81 mi ) . the proposed mine is one of the largest copper resources in north america . following the passage of the 2015 national defense authorization act , many native american and conservation groups fear the copper mine will destroy sacred and environmentally sensitive land . 
resolution copper (rcm) is a joint venture owned by rio tinto and bhp billiton formed to develop and operate an underground copper mine near superior, arizona, u.s. the project targets a deep-seated porphyry copper deposit located under the now inactive magma mine. rio tinto has reported an inferred resource of 1.624 billion tonnes containing 1.47 percent copper and 0.037 percent molybdenum at depths exceeding 1,300 metres (0.81 mi). the proposed mine is one of the largest copper resources in north america. following the passage of the 2015 national defense authorization act, many native american and conservation groups fear the copper mine will destroy sacred and environmentally sensitive land.
resolution copper (rcm) is a joint venture owned by rio tinto and bhp billiton formed to develop and operate an underground copper mine near superior, arizona, u.s. the project targets a deep-seated porphyry copper deposit located under the now inactive magma mine. rio tinto has reported an inferred resource of 1.624 billion tonnes containing 1.47 percent copper and 0.037 percent molybdenum at depths exceeding 1,300 metres (0.81 mi). the proposed mine is one of the largest copper resources in north america. following the passage of the 2015 national defense authorization act, many native american and conservation groups fear the copper mine will destroy sacred and environmentally sensitive land.