Injunction Sought to Block Oak Flat Land Trade for Massive Arizona Copper Mine
Tribal and conservation groups asked a federal judge today to block a land trade that would hand over thousands of acres in the Tonto National Forest in central Arizona to multinational mining company Rio Tinto for the massive Resolution Copper mine. The Oak Flat area, considered sacred by Apache and other Native people, would be destroyed by the mine.
Lawsuit Challenges Review of Mine Proposal That Would Destroy Oak Flat
PHOENIX— Tribal and conservation groups sued the U.S. Forest Service today to stop a land trade that would hand over thousands of acres in the Tonto National Forest in central Arizona to a London-based mining company. The Oak Flat area, considered sacred by Apache and other Native people, would be destroyed by multinational mining company Rio Tinto for a massive copper mine.
Send a Letter to the Biden Administration to Protect Oak Flat
Please sign your organization onto a letter urging President Joe Biden to immediately withdraw the recently issued Final Environmental Impact Statement, Resolution Copper Project and Land Exchange (EIS 20210005) that will facilitate a land exchange and construction of the Resolution Copper mine, resulting in the destruction of a Native American sacred area, Oak Flat or Chi’chil Bildagoteel.
Press Statement on Release of Resolution Copper FEIS
“With Arizona entering its 21st year of a long-term drought and the potential to pollute and deplete the town of Superior’s water supply, how can anyone let this happen, considering it would be a failed mining experiment? The east valley municipalities of Queen Creek, Gilbert, and San Tan area beware, this project would wipe out your water supply. The project itself will consume 40,000 acre feet of water a year which is the same as Tempe, Arizona ,which has a population of 180,000 people.”
EcoFlight overflight of Oak Flat and Pinto Valley
We recently did an overflight looking at the total footprint of the proposed Resolution Copper mine. Here is a short clip to give you an idea of what we would all lose if Oak Flat is privitized and the mine plan is allowed to move forward. Take a look at our vitual...
“Never Again”—what does a promise by Rio Tinto mean?
In the wake of Rio TInto’s destruction of sacred rock shelters in the Juukan Gorge in Western Australia in May of 2020, Rio Tinto has made grand pronouncement of how they would never again destory a sacred site anywhere in the world. In light of the caompany’s plan to do exactly that at Oak Flat, what does Rio Tinto’s promises mean?
We’ve written a white paper looking at the similarities between what Rio Tinto did at Juuakn Gorge and what they would like to do at Oak Flat.
Tell Rio Tinto not to steal Oak Flat for a failed experiment!
We need your help to keep Oak Flat in public ownership for everyone to enjoy. If you live in the United States you have additional opportunities to protect Oak Flat by contacting the US Forest Service. No matter where you live, please send an email to Simon Thompson, the Chairman of the Board of Rio Tinto, and ask him to not steal Oak Flat and to abandon the project.
Forest Service Caves to Pressure: Will Publish Resolution Copper FEIS 1/15/21
The US Forest Service announced today that they will be publishing a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) on January 15, 2021, for the controversial Resolution Copper proposal to destroy Oak Flat by building a large underground copper mine.