The U.S. Forest Service delivered their Preliminary Administrative Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Rosemont Copper Mine on Monday. The Service concluded that the mine would not jeopardize the continued existence of any of the ten federally listed threatened and endangered species in the area of the mine.
The Service submitted the statement to 17 local, state and federal agencies that are cooperating in preparing the document. Agencies have 30 days to provide their final comments, after which the FEIS will be finalized and issued.
The statement includes a description of the environmental impacts of the Rosemont Copper Project, including impacts to water and air quality, cultural resources, recreation and wildlife and includes the results of consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“USFWS”). The statement also concludes that the project will not result in adverse modification of any designated critical habitat. According to the Service, the anticipated monitoring and mitigation requirements will be required to minimize the impacts of the project.
“The Rosemont Mine Plan of Operations and associated mitigation programs are comprehensive, progressive, and thorough,” commented Jamie Sturgess, Augusta’s Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Government Affairs. “The issues and concerns of many parties have been addressed, through careful project facility siting, technology selection, pollution prevention, land and water set-asides, compensatory mitigation funding, community endowment efforts, and voluntary acquisition of ranches and rare surface water rights for preservation of habitat values.”
The USFS is also completing the Record of Decision (“ROD”) with the objective of issuing the ROD concurrently with the publication of the FEIS. The Forest Service also continued to say it can’t legally stop the mine if it meets all environmental laws.
In addition, the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) Section 404 permit continues to advance. The ACOE will use the FEIS to finalize the impacts and mitigation requirements for the Rosemont Project. According to Rosemont, receipt of this last required permit is expected shortly after the ROD and publication of the FEIS.
Coronado National Forest proposes to approve Rosemont Copper’s plan of operations for construction and operation “with concurrent reclamation” of its open-pit copper, molybdenum and silver mine in the Santa Rita Mountains southeast of Tucson. The mine would operate for 24 to 30 years.
Findings:
• The Forest Service found that the mine will meet federal particulate standards.
• The Forest Service found that the mining operations would drop the water table 100 feet near the mine pit several years after operations begin. Nearby springs could experience 10 feet of groundwater drawdown while mining occurs. The water table underneath Davidson Canyon and Cienega Creek, will not drop. Empire Gulch area could experience several feet of water table decline starting 50 years or more after the mine closes.
• The water table west of the Santa Ritas could decline 1.5 to 3.5 feet per year. However, due to Rosemont’s plan to extract most liquids from its tailings, it will use five to six times less water than the Freeport McMoRan Mine now operating in the area.
• The report found that the mine’s dry tailings will reduce tailings seepage into the aquifer to a maximum of eight gallons a minute. Computer models have predicted that tailings seepage wouldn’t exceed state water standards. Due to other mitigation measures, the report found that it is unlikely the mine will impact groundwater quality.