Arizona Department of Environmental Quality officials announced Friday that, following extensive public comment, an amended temporary individual aquifer protection permit (APP) has been issued to Curis Resources for discharges associated with a proposed mining operation in Florence.
ADEQ issued a temporary APP to Curis in September 2012. The temporary APP conditionally authorized a pilot project to inject solutions into copper bearing zones beneath the ground surface that would then be extracted and processed to recover copper. Monitoring of the injected solutions would be required to ensure adjacent groundwater resources are protected. Data from the pilot project may be used by Curis to develop data for an APP application for a full-scale project.
Before and following issuance of the temporary permit, there was extensive opportunity for public involvement including a public meeting and a public hearing and a request for comments. Upon receipt and consideration of 250 written comments, ADEQ has issued this amended temporary individual permit that adds requirements to the permit issued in September 2012. The changes include:
Boreholes within 150 feet of the ponds will be plugged and abandoned before discharges can occur.
Clarification in the permit that injection wells may be used as recovery wells if necessary to maintain control of injected fluids.
The time frame for initiating a hydrogeologic investigation and analysis report in the event of a permit exceedance is now three months instead of six months.
Groundwater level maps and analyses for the facility that demonstrate control of groundwater flow will now be required.
Reports submitted to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under its Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program permit must now also be submitted to ADEQ.
The time frame allowed for the monitoring well installation (MW-01) nearest the facility will be reduced from 90 days to 45 days following the effective date of the permit.