Resolution Copper Project Open for Debate, Tours
A lone hawk circles above my head as I stand looking out over the land about three miles east of Superior. It’s so quiet here. The first thought I have is, “wow, I’m standing just where the Prince of England stood when he visited here!” The second thought is more sobering. How in the world could anyone think of mining here in this beautiful place? But that’s exactly what Resolution Copper Mining proposes to do.
In fact, where I am standing is on top of what may be one of the largest underground copper deposits in the world. Initial exploration conducted from 2001 to 2003 indicates that this ore body could be capable of producing 20% of the expected future U.S. copper demand over five decades. It’s very deep underground, more than a mile deep. It’s hot down there, too, about 185 degrees Fahrenheit. Mining at such depths and in such conditions is going to take some doing.
Resolution, co-owned by BHP-Billiton, Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group, is working on a plan to do just that, evaluating a range of mining alternatives and water, transportation, and infrastructure needs. These pre-feasibility studies are expected to conclude in 2012. An Environmental Impact Statement, due to the public by 2010, is expected to help the company guide decisions regarding operations. They hope to begin actual production by 2020, anticipating up to 500,000 tons of copper metal per year. Parent companies Rio Tinto and BHP-Billiton are two of the largest mining companies in the world.
In order to continue with the project, Resolution is asking the federal government to pass the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act, which is in Congressional subcommittee hearings as this article goes to press. The mining company needs land currently owned by the U.S. Forest Service in order to continue with exploration and operations. In turn they are offering over 5500 acres of land from their private holdings, parcels they claim have high-priority environmental importance for the region. The newest version of the swap includes giving more of the land near Apache Leap over to Forest Service control. The deal also includes a new recreational area, improved rock climbing access areas and a plan for nature trails to access more of the scenic Leap, all on Resolution’s dime.
Three miles west, in the historic mining town of Superior, the residents are heating up about the mining project. And it’s turning into a real pressure cooker, with some folks fervently in favor of, and others just as fervently opposed to, both the project and the land exchange.
Both sides have concerns they are passionate about. The “pro-” folks are hoping the project will grow Superior’s economy, one that has suffered the boom-and-bust cycles of mining many times since 1875. The “anti-” folks are worried about the environmental impact. Superior is one of the more beautiful places in Arizona and they don’t want to see that natural beauty spoiled. They also worry that the lands proposed for exchange to the Forest Service are “old over-grazed ranches,” and point to the particular historical and sacred significance of the Oak Flat recreational area, a 16-space campground in the Tonto National Forest. There is concern that the Apache Indian tribe has used this area for ceremonial acorn gathering, something that would be lost if the land exchange goes through, as Oak Flat lies square in the path of the mining operation.
Some residents are in the middle. They have lived through mining before, and they would really like to see the boom-and-bust cycle broken. The people here want jobs and prosperity, but not at the expense of trashing the town and the surroundings.
Myths and half-truths swirl about the project like that hawk overhead. I went to an interview and tour with the company armed with an arsenal of concerns; just how are they proposing to mine the copper at levels that deep? Is our beloved Apache Leap in danger of sinking? Is this land going to wind up looking like the barren wastelands of other nearby open pit sites? What’s going to be done about the mess when they are finished with the project? Are environmental pollutants a byproduct of this proposed mine?
The mining method proposed by Resolution is an underground approach called “block caving.” Essentially, a series of tunnels is built below the ore body, using gravity to allow the ore to fall to the bottom of the cave into collection points. Loaders (probably robotic) will collect the ore and transport it to an underground crusher, and then the ore will be raised in shafts to the surface to be transported for processing.
Block caving is nothing new. Resolution calls the method economical and efficient, adding that this underground technique will preclude the need for an open pit and limit rock waste piles. They add that they will be using state-of-the-art mining technology, which is supposed to be far superior to the methods that created the problems with sites that have been mined in the past.
Opponents are worried about “subsidence,” the sinking of the ground due to the undermining of the earth from beneath. Other concerns include the byproduct rock piles and ground and water pollution. There are valid precedents for their concerns; mining history has not been ecologically kind to this area. They don’t have to look far to point out the problems mining companies have left in this region.
Resolution Copper proposes a philosophy of “responsible mining,” citing a commitment to environmental stewardship and economic sustainability. They insist that they are planning for the future clean up (“reclamation”) of the mine before they even begin construction. Part of that plan includes the issue of subsidence. They do not deny that some subsidence would occur, and claim that this is only speeding up the natural evolution of the topography of the land. However, the area that is expected to “sink” is well removed from Apache Leap, and in fact the new A-frame structure recently completed lies between the expected subsidence area and the escarpment. It is hard to fathom that the company would spend $4 million in construction costs for a shaft just to have it sink.
Resolution has been hard at work cleaning up the land in Superior known as “Smelter Town,” the site of former mining operations by Magma Copper Co. and others. The company has restored (not remodeled, but restored) the old hospital after feedback from town meetings informed them of the historical significance of the building; it is now being used for project offices. They are continuing local work on restoration where possible and clean-up where needed. They have built a tidy little wastewater treatment plant as well, and the treated water is piped 27 miles southeast to the new Magma Irrigation District, a collective of farmers who combine it (1 part to10 parts) with Central Arizona Project water to help with cotton and alfalfa irrigation. Resolution gives the water to the district free of charge.
As to the huge, ugly rock piles left behind, Resolution explained that they have a plan to utilize the rock they pull from underneath the surface to complete a reclamation project in Pinto Valley, another mining project that has left an unsightly open pit scar several miles east. BHP-Billiton, one of Resolution’s parents, also owns the Pinto Valley mine, so there is an interest from this particular company to “recycle” Resolution’s rocks eastward. The reclamation plan there includes transporting the rock to the open pit to fill it in and then reseeding over the top to restore the vegetation.
Admittedly, the other half of the ownership, Rio Tinto, like many other mining companies, has left some serious messes in the past. Resolution insists, however, that they have learned the lessons of good community relations, sustainable development and responsible mining, if such a thing is possible. They offer up case studies where they have completed successful reclamations like the Flambeau Mine in Ladysmith, Wisconsin, Ridgeway, South Carolina, and the Diavik Diamond Mine in the sub-Arctic region of the Northwest Territories.
Resolution points to Diavik as an example of another hot-topic issue, as well: employment. They state that approximately half of the workforce there was Aboriginal. They claim a strong commitment to local economical impact and hefty job growth. Others are not so sure, claiming the numbers are inflated and many of the higher-level jobs will be filled from outside of the area.
The revenues from the copper and related businesses will undoubtedly help the economy of the state of Arizona, an attractive idea in these tough times. The Resolution Project is projecting an annual impact of $798.2 million, the economic equivalent of one and a half Super Bowls per year for 66 years for a total economic impact of $46.4 billion. That’s a lot of football.
Perhaps, as with most myths, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Yes, the ground will probably sink, but probably more slowly and not where it would be so dramatically noticed. Yes, there will probably be some new rock piles, and yes, there will probably be some environmental waste to clean up. Yes, there will be some jobs, but probably not the masses of happy employees that some predict.
The bottom line here is most likely, as usual, the middle line. If there is some economic impact to Superior, perhaps that will help the town to diversify the economy with other businesses, easing that boom-and-bust pattern. Perhaps the money the copper company is giving to the school for educational partnerships and scholarships could be put to good use in the hard-hit educational system, producing a well-prepared workforce.
There are two things that seem to be irrefutable. First, with that kind of copper deposit, it seems inevitable that eventually it will come up out of the ground. Some company will get it out sooner or later. Increased concerns for domestic resources as opposed to foreign resources fore these kinds of products are putting the pressure on. Recent reports regarding global warming and climate change are increasing the pressure for new environmentally sound technologies like wind turbines, solar panels and hybrid cars. All use copper.
Second, whether whatever company that gets the copper is environmentally responsible or not is not up to that company. They are more responsible to their shareholders than to Mother Nature; they’ll do whatever is economical for them. No, it is up to the watchdogs out there to make sure that the company lives up to their promises. The nearby residents, the “environmental shareholders” of the project, need to keep asking the tough questions, voicing their concerns, and guiding the policies. They are, in fact, the real stewards of the project as well as of the land.
Resolution seems eager to work with the residents of the town. They hold town halls, issue briefs, operate a website (www.resolutioncopper.com). They are proud to point out that they are a transparent company with a public relations stake in the future of the town and the surroundings as well as the mine. If this is true, then everyone needs to be communicating about what that future needs to look like.
Meanwhile, the good news for now is that as part of that transparency they are so proud of, Resolution welcomes visitors. Anyone who wishes to take a community tour may contact the mine office located at 402 W. Main St. in Superior (520-689-3392). Although the tours have stopped for the next couple of months for the hottest part of the summer, they will be in full swing come autumn. The tours are popular and usually full, so be sure to call ahead. Standing on one of the largest copper ore deposits in the world is a great way to spend an afternoon, and a good way to decide the issue for yourself.
Maybe that hawk will point the way.
