Copper mine at Rosemont Ranch will greatly benefit community

By Jamie Sturgess, Augusta Resources

Pima County supervisors will continue discussion this month about the proposed copper mine at Rosemont Ranch. They, and County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry and his staff, have given the initial information careful consideration and asked tough questions.

That's exactly what needs to happen. Augusta Resource Corporation, Rosemont's owner, needs constructive input from this community if it is to build the absolute best mine possible. With productive public participation, Rosemont can be a model for our nation.

We are consistently and voluntarily exceeding what is required, both by law and by expectation.

Here are some examples:

● Open space guidelines. The Rosemont Plan of Operations has pledged to meet Pima County's Conservation Land System guidelines, provide additional mitigation lands and commit the property to open space forever, after mine closure.

● Water use and dust control. Augusta has purchased Central Arizona Project water to use at the mine. The Rosemont plan will use the latest technology for a state-of-the-art tailings process, saving water and eliminating dust and air pollution.

● Reclaiming mine land. Augusta will start restoring the land and revegetating soon after the mine opens — long before traditional mines have started this step. Augusta will have thorough funding and insurance to cover the cost of this work.

● Minimizing visual impact. The plan includes a perimeter screening berm constructed within the first few years of mining and locating all facilities to minimize impacts — visually and environmentally.

● Community support. Augusta's proposed endowment of approximately $50 million would be managed by a local community board to support additional open space land acquisition, invasive species control, public safety programs and other local needs.

This mine has the potential to provide exceptional economic benefits to Southern Arizona and the United States, hundreds of well-paying jobs for an entire generation and enough copper to supply one in 20 Americans with domestic copper for 20 years.

All this must be balanced with the long-term community benefits of maintaining open space and public safety.

Augusta is working on a revised and comprehensive mining plan for the U.S. Forest Service, to be submitted within the next four months. The plan will then be put through a stringent public review and input process as well as a thorough environmental impact study.

The community will have many, many opportunities to impact this plan. The end result will be a binding legal document that Augusta must adhere to, as would any other organization that might later try to put a mine at Rosemont.

No copper mine in Arizona has been done this way before. If our nation is to continue our standard of living, we need to find ways to produce domestic natural resources that support that standard of living. The community truly has an enormous amount to gain.

Write to Jamie Sturgess at [email protected].

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