President Obama signed into law the National Defense Authorization Ac, which includes a provision for the land swap (Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act) needed for the underground Resolution Copper mine to move forward.
Resolution said, "The heart of the legislation is the exchange of 2,400 acres of federally owned land above the copper deposit for 5,300 acres of land owned by Resolution Copper composed of valuable recreational, conservation and culturally significant land throughout Arizona." A story on Mineweb.com reported that "The high-value conservations land were identified through the input from the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Audubon Society and others. The swap consolidates ownership of the land where the mine will be developed and operated."
Resolution Copper provided this summary of the parcels involved in the land exchange:
It only started in 2005, I would say its about time. Lets get to work!
ReplyDeleteYes. Get to the mining.
DeleteHow much are the royalty payments going to the Indians?
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ReplyDeleteRemember that the bill the President signed into law did not give away Native American lands. It traded US Forest Service lands for other higher valued conservation lands. Oak Creek Flat was a public campground open to anyone.
ReplyDeleteThere was an interesting letter published by a member of the San Carlos Apache tribe with a very different perspective of the land swap and the Tribe's interest in the affected lands - http://www.eacourier.com/opinion/letters_to_editor/letter-to-the-editor-return-the-holy-ground-crosses-from/article_db1423ea-1f7e-11e5-8e59-c354f02c70ca.html.
Another letter, published today from the Tribe's former historian notes the Oak Flat had never been considered sacred by the Tribe before - http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2015/07/23/oak-flat-sacred/30587803/