Desalinization plant at Puerto Penasco to supply Arizona?

The non-profit Arizona-Mexico Commission, a trade and business group is proposing a study on the feasibility of a jointly operated U.S.-Mexico desalination plant at Puerto Penasco ("Rocky Point") on the Gulf of California.

According to a story in today's Arizona Republic, the "study will look at a range of issues, including cost, funding sources, energy needs and environmental effects on the gulf. Its findings could point toward a joint project with Mexico or to some other alternative. The major players so far are Puerto Peñasco; the states of Arizona and Sonora; and Arizona's two largest water providers: Central Arizona Project and Salt River Project."

The proposed study would examine the challenges of building a plant to handle 11.4 million gallons a day at the start and up to 45.6 million gallons a day by 2020, enough water to serve at least 250,000 people a year.

A desal plant planned near Huntington Beach, Calif., that could produce up to 50 million gallons of drinking water a day will cost an estimated $250 million to build. There are no explanations of who would pay for the Puerto Penasco plant.

Candidate answers to top 14 science questions facing America

I've been an earlier and strong endorser of Science Debate 2008, the movement to get the presidential candidates to debate science issues or to at least answer a set of the 14 top science questions.

Sen. Obama is the first to answer the 14 questions. Sen. McCain's answers may be forthcoming.

The 14 questions were developed from over 3,400 questions submitted by more than 38,000 signers of the ScienceDebate2008 initiative. The questionnaire is a joint effort led by ScienceDebate2008, with Scientists and Engineers for America, AAAS, the National Academies, the Council on Competitiveness, and several other organizations, together representing over 125 million voters.

Questions cover energy policy, water, climate change, education, innovation, scientific integrity, national security, economics in a science-driven global economy, health care, ocean health, biosecurity, space, stem cells, genetics, and research.

Resolution Copper named "corporate victim" in land trial

Federal prosecutors today issued a corporate disclosure statement naming Resolution Copper Mining LLC of Superior, and two other companies as "for-profit corporate victims of criminal activity" alleged in the indictment against Congressman Rick Renzi and his business associates earlier this year. At the same time, prosecutors delivered copies of the evidence against Renzi to his lawyers.

Resolution Copper Mining is owned by Resolution Copper Co., a wholly owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto PLC and BHP Copper, which is owned by BHP Billiton. Development of the mine is dependent on a swap of federal, state, and private lands. [right, main shaft to the right of crane]

Among other things, the indictment accuses the congressman of crafting a swap of federally owned mining land that would benefit himself and a business partner. Today's action by prosecutors supports news reports that Resolution Copper refused to go along with the alleged deal.

Phoenix Mars Lander - many successes, more challenges

With the completion of the initial 90-day mission, the Phoenix Mars Lander team noted a number of successes: Phoenix has already confirmed the presence of water ice, determined the soil is alkaline and identified magnesium, sodium, potassium, chloride and perchlorate in the soil. The Stereo Imager, Robotic Arm Camera and microscope have returned more than 20,000 pictures since landing day, May 25.

The Lander will widen its deepest trench, called "Stone Soup," to scoop a fresh sample of soil from that depth for analysis in the wet chemistry laboratory. Stone Soup measures about 7 inches deep. The first attempt to collect a sample from Stone Soup, on Aug. 26, got 2 to 3 cubic centimeters (half a teaspoon) into the scoop. This was judged to be not quite enough, so in coming days the team plans to have Phoenix test a revised method for handling a sample rich in water-ice. [above, the Lander's Robotic Arm's workspace after 90 sols. Credit, NASA-JPL, Caltech; UA, Texas A&M]

Mining, oil & gas, evolution, are suddenly hot political topics

The selection of Sarah Palin as the Republican vice president candidate is suddenly making hot political issues out of mining, oil and gas, and teaching evolution. Emails and blogs started pouring out almost as soon as the announcement was made.

For example, mining columnist Jack Caldwell, who blogs at "I Think Mining" is being widely quoted for his post that "This is about to become the most exciting election ever. And mining issues may well be central."

The energy industry is abuzz this week because Gov. Palin just a few days ago signed a bill authorizing the state to award a license to Calgary-based TransCanada Corp. to build a $27 billion, 1,715- mile (2,744-kilometer) pipeline to carry 4.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day from Prudhoe Bay to the Alberta Hub in Canada and then on to U.S. markets.

Under its license agreement with the state, TransCanada will get a $500 million subsidy in return for seeking federal regulatory approval for the project and finding customers for the pipeline. The license doesn't guarantee construction of the project. Competitors for the license were ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and BP.

Gov. Palin is chair this year of the Interstate Oil & Gas Compact Commission (IOGCC). Arizona is a member and AZGS is the state contact with IOGCC because we provide support to Arizona's oil and gas commission. A couple hours after the VP announcement, I got an extensive bio of Gov. Palin from IOGCC along with a video clip of her speech to IOGCC this spring.

A few minutes later, a colleague from the evolution battles in Kansas forwarded a clip from the Anchorage Daily News during the 2006 gubernatorial campaign which reported, "The volatile issue of teaching creation science in public schools popped up in the Alaska governor's race this week when Republican Sarah Palin said she thinks creationism should be taught alongside evolution in the state's public classrooms." This is now flying around the blogosphere in the science and science education communities.

GAO report on hardrock mining in the West

The U.S. General Accounting Office this week publicly released a report it gave to Congress last month on "Hardrock Mining: Information on State Royalties and Trends in Mineral Imports and Exports." The report responds to Congress’s request for information on revisions to the 1872 Mining Law by evaluating royalty policies for hard rock mining within 12 Western states, tracing the importation statistics of 15 hardrock minerals since 1975, and assessing the difficulty of aggregating information on the collection and maintenance of mining data, according to a summary in the AGI Government Affairs bulletin.

In summary, GAO concluded, “The 12 western states assess multiple types of royalties, including functional royalties, on mining operations, which often differ depending on land ownership and the mineral being extracted; in addition, each royalty can be governed by different sets of exclusions, deductions, and limitations. For example, for private mining operations conducted on federal, state, or private land, Arizona assesses a net proceeds functional royalty of 1.25 percent on gold mining operations, and an additional gross revenue royalty of at least 2 percent for gold mining operations on state lands. In addition, 9 of the 12 states assess different types of royalties for different types of minerals.” [above, Jerome copper mine, discovered in 1876]. Copyright Michael Collier]

Michael Collier photo exhibit heading to Houston, Denver

Flagstaff-based geologist, doctor, and professional photographer Michael Collier will exhibit Stones from the Sky at the Houston Museum of Natural Science starting September 13, 2008, according to an announcement from AGI.

Michael specializes in aerial landscape photography, taking dramatic shots of areas such as the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Canadian Rockies, and Alaskan Glaciers. His current exhibit consists of 45 prints that highlight the American geologic landscape. He currently spends about half his time in the field, or the air, taking photos. The other half is spent as a family doctor in Arizona.

The photography exhibit was co-sponsored by AGI and AAAS last summer while it was on display in Washington D.C. The exhibit will be on display in Houston until March 1, 2009 when it will then move to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. It will be on display in Denver from March 15, 2009 until August 1, 2009. [above, sunrise over Meteor Crater. Copyright, Michael Collier]

NPR's "Science Friday" to broadcast from UA Mars Lander center

There was a report this afternoon that the popular "Science Friday" show [right, host Ira Flatow] on public radio, will broadcast from the Phoenix Mars Lander command center at the University of Arizona on Friday, Sept. 19. I 'll share details when I find out more.

Congo wants to more than double its stake in Freeports copper/cobalt mine

Bloomberg.com reports that "Congo's government wants to more than double its stake in a joint venture with [Phoenix-based] Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc., which is developing one of the world's largest unexploited copper and cobalt deposits in the country. The state wants to increase its share of the $1.9 billion Tenke Fungurume project to 45 percent, from the current 17.5 percent, Gaby Matshafu, deputy Chief of Staff at Congo's Mines Ministry, said in an interview late yesterday in Kinshasa." [right, copper ore at Tenke Fungurume mine, Congo. Credit, Freeport McMoRan]

Mining.com says "The $1,9-billion Tenke Fungurume mine will initially produce an average of 250-million pounds of copper and 18-million pounds of cobalt a year, but Freeport has high hopes for significant expansions and even additional projects at Tenke Fungurume.

The current mine plan is based on ore reserves of about 100-million metric tons, with average ore grades of 2,3% copper and 0,3% cobalt, but the company believes there is the potential to triple the reserves at Tenke in the medium term, Freeport CEO Richard Adkerson said last month."

Freeport calls Tenke Fungurume " the largest undeveloped, high-grade copper/cobalt project in the world today. "

Stakes raised in battle for Asarco

Grupo Mexico's Phoenix-based subsidiary, Americas Mining Corp., put $2.7 billion in cash plus a $440 million guaranteed bond on the table today in a bold proposal to win the court battle over who controls Tucson-based Asarco. Grupo Mexico expects to use another $1 billion of Asarco's cash to offer "full payment of all of allowed creditor claims."

The way I understand it, the difference in the two reorganization plans in front of the bankruptcy court is that Asarco LLC proposes to settle claims of billions of dollars in environmental and asbestos liabilities, while Grupo Mexico would continue to litigate them. Under today's proposal, Grupo would pay them in full, once the courts determine what is owed.

Grupo argues its plan is better for Asarco creditors "since it remains the only proposal offering creditors full value for their allowed claims." The key word there seems to be "allowed" - the amount allowed by the courts, rather than amounts negotiated between creditors and Asarco in the competing proposal.

The judge is expected to make a decision as early as next month.

Drinking Water report

The National Academy of Science has published a new, 28-page report on "Drinking Water: Understanding the Science and Policy behind a Critical Resource." It can be downloaded at no cost.

Tucson is featured for our water-conservation measures and Phoenix is discussed for it's rapid population growth and demands for water as symbolic of much of the West.

Solar plane sets record 3.5 day flight over Arizona

The Zephyr, a solar powered plane, flew for 82 hours 37 minutes, exceeding the current official world record for unmanned flight which stands at 30 hours 24 minutes set by Global Hawk in 2001 and Zephyr's previous longest flight of 54 hours achieved last year. The 3.5 day flight took place at Yuma Proving Grounds last month but was just announced. Keeping a solar powered plane in the air for 3 nights is no small feat.

Although touted as eventually being used for research purposes such as earth observation, the initial and primary uses will be military. The plane is jointly funded by the UK Ministry of Defence in partnership with the US Department of Defense (DoD).

The plane's builder, British defense contractor Qinetiq said, "Launched by hand, Zephyr is an ultra-lightweight carbon-fibre aircraft. By day it flies on solar power generated by amorphous silicon solar arrays no thicker than sheets of paper that cover the aircraft's wings. By night it is powered by rechargeable lithium-sulphur batteries, supplied by SION Power Inc, which are recharged during the day using solar power."

The flight trial at Yuma took place between July 28 and 31 with temperatures up to 113°F. Zephyr was flown on autopilot and via satellite communications to a maximum altitude of more than 60,000ft.

New volume of Arizona Water Atlas released

ADWR has released Volume 8 of the 9- volume Arizona Water Atlas, "Active Management Area (AMA) Planning Area." The volume covers the 5 AMAs that contain about 80% of the state's population, Prescott, Phoenix, Pinal, Tucson, and Santa Cruz.

The downloadable file is 236 Mb, but a lower quality, compressed version at 18 Mb is available or you can download one section at a time.

The volume is a technical report inlcuding data on supply and demand, geography, ground and surface water, population, and climate. [right, AMAs. Credit, ADWR]

"The West will not be ignored" in presidential contest

The editorial in yesterday's Denver Post declared, "The West will not be ignored" and predicted that the 8 Rocky Mountain states are no longer predictably Republican and perhaps four or more could go Democratic in the presidential contest. "Like all Americans, Westerners grumble at the rising cost of gasoline and home heating. But we also host the nation's greatest storehouse of natural resources and worry about how the rush to drill for gas and oil, mine uranium and eventually perhaps produce oil shale can affect our fragile environment and precious water resources. And we can't wait for both parties to address those issues."

Gov. Napolitano noted that just 6 years ago, all 8 states had Democratic governors. Today, 5 of them, Arizona, New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming and Colorado, have Democratic governors.

I think the Post is on target. Sen. McCain recently weighed in on the Colorado River Compact and today's Las Vegas Review Journal discusses both McCain's and Obama's positions on nuclear waste storage at Yucca Mountain.

Flood damage will keep Supai closed until spring 2009

The Havasupai tribe is closing the village of Supai to visitors until damage from the August 17 flood is repaired, expected to take until next spring. There are reports of extensive destruction of the travertine deposits that make up the face of the waterfalls and form the pools at their base.

There was also extensive damage to bridges, campgrounds, and trails.

The Flagstaff Daily Sun posted a slideshow of the flood and its aftermath. [right, Havasu Canyon. Credit, Havasupai Reservation]

First-person account of Grand Canyon flood

Tyler at the "I'm Just Sayin.." blog has posted an extensive first-person narrative of the Havasupai flood of August 17, with numerous photos (one of them at right) and videos. The videos of the creek and waterfalls add greatly to what's already been posted elsewhere and there are a lot of photos of the flood, refugees, and the rescue.

Tyler's tells an amazing story of rescues, heroism, confusion, and frustration through the ordeal.

Rio Tinto profits more than double

Rio Tinto Ltd. profits were up 113% to $6.91 billion, for the first six months of the year over last year, compared to $3.25 million for the same period a year earlier. Revenue also more than doubled to $27.19 billion from $12.06 billion. The company attributed much of the rise to increased prices for iron ore and aluminum.

Rio Tinto is majority owner of the Resolution Copper project near Superior [right, credit Rio Tinto]. Rio Tinto and partner BHP Billiton are investing $652 million in feasibility studies on the proposed mine. [left, geologist examines cores at Resolution mine. Credit, Rio Tinto]

Arizonans support uranium mining, nuclear power, Yucca Mtn repository

Fifty-five percent of the Arizonans surveyed support the Yucca Mountain Project [right, south portal with boring machine. Credit US DOE] to store radioactive waste from nuclear power plants in Nevada. This compares to 58% of Nevadans who oppose the plan, according to a new poll in the Las Vegas Review Journal published this morning.

The poll shows only 20% of Arizonans opposed the plan but 51% of Utahns surveyed were opposed. A "temporary" nuclear waste repository proposed on the Skull Valley Indian reservation west of Salt Lake City is opposed by the the governor of Utah and others, and has raised the public debate of the issue across that state.

The LVRJ poll also found that "58% percent of those polled in Nevada, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming supported increased uranium mining to expand nuclear power."

Phoenix Lander digs deep between polygons

The Mars Lander dug a sample from about 7 inches deep, the deepest yet, in the "Stone Soup" trench [right, credit NASA/JPL-CalTech, UA, Texas A&M] between two polygonal blocks, in hopes of finding something new. The thinking is that a variety of materials may have collected in the gap between the polygons.

The sample will go into the Lander wet chemistry lab.

August 26 marks the end of the main 90-day mission for the Lander, but NASA previously extended it for another 30 days based on its successes so far.

State Engineer appointed at ADOT

Floyd Roehrich, Jr. will assume the post of state engineer at the AZ Dept. of Transportation, handling highway development, maintenance and environmental stewardship efforts. He replaces Sam Elters, who recently left ADOT for a position in California.

As state engineer, Roehrich will direct work in ADOT’s nine construction districts. He will oversee the Intermodal Transportation Division, responsible for the construction and maintenance of more than 6,700 miles of highways and 4,000 bridges across the state. ADOT’s Office of Environmental Services is included in this division, which incorporates environmental stewardship with highway planning, operation and maintenance.

In most other Western states, the State Engineer title goes to the person responsible for state water rights.