Indianz.Com > News > Cronkite News: Biden administration puts halt to mine at sacred Apache site
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Feds rescind OK for copper mine at Oak Flat, seek ‘thorough review’
Thursday, March 4, 2021
Cronkite News
WASHINGTON – The government Monday rescinded its approval for a proposed massive copper mine at Oak Flat, just days before it was to transfer thousands of acres of federal land for the project.
The Department of Agriculture said it
ordered the rescission
to allow for a “thorough review based on significant input from collaborators, partners and the public” after the January 15 release of a final environmental impact statement on the project.
Critics charged that the January 15 statement had been rushed to beat the incoming Biden administration – but the USDA cited Biden’s
January 26 order
directing agencies to consult more with tribes as one reason for the reversal.
San Carlos Apache Chairman Terry Rambler hailed the withdrawal of approval for the mine “the right move.”
“The Resolution copper mine project will desecrate Chich’il Bildagoteel, also known as Oak Flat, which is the heart of our religious and cultural beliefs,” Rambler said in a written statement. He went on to say the “U.S. Forest Service failed to follow the law in the preparation of a sham final environmental impact statement that was used to justify trading away our sacred land to wealthy foreign mining companies.”
Officials with Resolution Copper, the mining company behind the project, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday. But mine supporters like Gov. Doug Ducey were “extremely disappointed” in the reversal. “Undoing lengthy, comprehensive, and already-completed federal environmental studies on a whim with the changing of federal administrations doesn’t work,” Ducey said. “This type of activity threatens an untold number of major projects in Arizona and around the country.” Ducey said the proposed mine is expected to generate up to 1,450 jobs for workers who would receive $149 million in compensation annually. He said it could be worth about $1 billion a year in direct and indirect economic impact for the state. In materials on the mine, Resolution says the project could pump $61 billion into the economy over the projected 60-year life of the mine, and annual increases of up to $113 million in state and local taxes in addition to $200 million in federal taxes. At full capacity, it says, the mine could produce up to one-quarter of the nation’s demand for copper. But critics say that comes at too high a price to the environment and to sacred tribal lands. “We’re grateful the Biden administration recognized that the fast-tracked environmental analysis was a sham and we know a thorough review will show a mine at Oak Flat will do irreparable damage,” said Randy Serraglio of the Center for Biological Diversity. “These sacred lands should never be handed over to a mining company and we won’t stop until they’re protected for good.” The land could have been handed over as early as next week, under a congressionally approved swap in which the federal government would have given 2,422 acres of copper-rich land to Resolution Copper in exchange for 5,459 acres of other land in southeast Arizona. That deal was approved in December 2014, but could not go forward until governmental reviews were completed. The January 15 release of the environmental statement from the Forest Service would have cleared the way for the land exchange – until Monday’s reversal. In ordering the reversal, the USDA cited President Joe Biden’s memorandum calling for increased tribal consultation, saying it wanted to ensure “the Forest Service has complied with the environmental, cultural, and archaeological analyses required.”CORRECTING LINK:
— indianz.com (@indianz) March 2, 2021
Days after asking a federal judge to stop a huge copper mine on sacred territory, the San Carlos Apache Tribe is celebrating the Biden administration’s decision to pull back the controversial development. @ProtectOakFlat #Arizonahttps://t.co/2Iy5Jqkus0
![protectoakflat](https://indianz.com/News/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/05/protectoakflat-scaled.jpg)
Note: This story originally appeared on Cronkite News. It is published via a Creative Commons license. Cronkite News is produced by the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.
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