Pima County Supervisors to consider Resolution opposing the Copper World mine
The Pima County Board of Supervisors will vote Tuesday on a proposed resolution reaffirming the county’s opposition to the Copper World mine.
If approved, as expected, it will be the fourth time since 2007 the county has passed resolutions opposing open pit copper mining in the Santa Rita Mountains. The resolution is being offered by District 5 Supervisor Andrés Cano.
The resolution would direct Pima County staff to continue to oppose plans by the Arizona State Land Department to auction 160 acres south of Corona de Tucson that Copper World is seeking to purchase for use as a mine waste dump.
Land Commissioner Robyn Sahid on Oct. 8 rejected Pima County’s request that the department not proceed with the land auction.
The resolution directs the County Administrator and staff to:
“Provide information to other entities as needed to document the County's continuing concerns about the impacts of the proposed (Copper World) Project as the Project evolves;
Take all necessary measures to protect the health, safety, and welfare of residents of, and visitors, to Southern Arizona using or enjoying County infrastructure and resources affected by the Project;
Take all necessary measures to protect the health, safety, and welfare of people using the air and water resources affected by the Project;
Take all necessary measures to protect County Conservation Lands, and all lands within the Maeveen Marie Behan Conservation Lands System, that may be affected by the Project;
Actively advocate at the State and Federal level against the Project, including the Project's proposed acquisition of 160 acres of State Trust land, that will facilitate the development of mine tailings near residential homes and the Copper Ridge Elementary School.”
Copper World would drain more than three billion gallons of water a year from the aquifer beneath Sahuarita and Green Valley, threatens to destroy two Outstanding Arizona Waters at Davidson Canyon and Cienega Creek which supply potable water to Tucson, and unleash 40,000 trucks a year across unpaved roads on the Santa Rita Experimental Range and through downtown Sahuarita.
“We encourage everyone against this horrific project to attend the meeting or send emails to supervisors asking them to pass the resolution,” says John Dougherty, Executive Director of Save the Scenic Santa Ritas. “It’s extremely important to show Hudbay and its investors that southern Arizona citizens have been, and will always be, strongly opposed to mining in the Santa Rita Mountains.”
The meeting begins at 9 a.m., Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the Pima County Administration Building, 130 W. Congress St., 1st Floor, Board of Supervisors Hearing Room in Tucson.