Oak Flat. Photo Credit: EcoFlight
Resolution Copper Mine – Privatization of public lands
Resolution Copper Mine
Public land sacred to the San Carlos Apache Tribe will be transformed into a polluted, 1000-foot-deep crater if Resolution Copper Mining succeeds in its plan to develop one of the largest copper mines in the United States. Land for the mine, located in the Tonto National Forest of Arizona, was protected from mining by President Eisenhower in 1955—but no longer, thanks to a controversial land exchange Congress legislated in 2014.
Resolution Copper Mine Location
Resolution Copper Mine
A controversial land exchange would develop one of the nation’s largest copper mines on public land sacred to the San Carlos Apache Tribe.
Resolution Copper Mine – The Details
Resolution Copper Mining, a subsidiary of multinational mining conglomerates Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton, is planning to develop one of the nation’s largest copper mines in central Arizona. The mine’s footprint would include Oak Flat, a part of the Tonto National Forest that has been protected from mining by a public land order from President Eisenhower in 1955. Oak Flat is sacred, ancestral land of the San Carlos Apache Tribe, who have been fighting against the mine for more than a decade. Overall, the mine would cover approximately 7,000 acres of surface area and extend more than a mile below the surface.
Resolution’s plan is dependent on a land exchange authorized by Congress in 2014. After failing as a standalone bill for nine years despite Resolution’s extensive lobbying, the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act was tacked on as a rider to the National Defense Authorization Act, legislation that Congress must pass every year to fund the Defense Department. Under the terms of the exchange, Resolution will receive 2,422 acres of Tonto National Forest, including Oak Flat, in exchange for 5,344 acres of land elsewhere in Arizona. The privatization of Oak Flat would significantly increase the size of the mine, and thereby increase its financial viability. It would also reduce federal oversight, as the privately owned land would be primarily subject to Arizona law, rather than the federal laws that would apply with continued public ownership.
Resolution Copper plans to utilize block caving, a mining process that has been called upside down, or inverted, open pit mining. The method involves undercutting the orebody (the portion of the earth containing the copper) to make it collapse in a series of chambers, or block caves. The collapse breaks up the ore, which is then transported to the surface for processing. The collapse is not limited to the orebody—the surface ultimately subsides. In this case, the Resolution Copper mine is expected to leave a crater more than a mile wide and 1,000 feet deep. The block cave process also uses—and pollutes—vast quantities of water. The Resolution mine, in the arid Arizona landscape, will require 6.5 billion gallons of water per year.
The Resolution Copper mine does not have final approval. The Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act requires the Forest Service to evaluate the environmental impacts of the land exchange and the mine’s planned operations before the land trade can be completed and mining starts. Though the Act does not permit the Forest Service to reject the land exchange, it does not change the agency’s discretion to reject the mining plan. The Forest Service’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement was issued on August 10, 2019, initiating a 90-day public comment period. The Forest Service is currently evaluating comments on the DEIS and expects to issue a Final EIS and Draft Record of Decision in the fall of 2020.
Meanwhile, the San Carlos Apache Tribe is leading the fight to stop the mine through repeal of the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act. Representative Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) have taken up the fight, each sponsoring the Save Oak Flat Act in his chamber of Congress.
Public Lands Privatization Schemes
Learn more about the public lands at risk across the United States.
Dairy Syncline Mine
Village at Wolf Creek
Resolution Copper Mine
Ray Mine Expansion
Las Vegas Sprawl
OMYA Mining Public Land Sale
Emery County Public Land Management Act
ONSHORE Act and Federal Land Freedom Act
King Cove Land Exchange
National Monument Reductions
How You Can Help
Help protect the magnificent wild places of the West! Be a guardian for public lands by joining the conversation, learning about current issues, and making your voice heard. Together, we’re a powerful force for nature.
Recent Stories From Public Lands

Nine reasons to save the Joshua tree
Learn what sets the iconic Joshua tree apart—and what you can do to save it
Public Lands Press
Conservation groups granted intervention to defend Utah national monuments
Tribes granted separate motion to intervene in December
Read more >We can promote resilience in Santa Fe mountain forests
The Sangre de Cristo Mountains rise in beauty behind Santa Fe. They are home for species ranging from rare giant helleborine orchids to the tiny threatened American pikas, along with our state’s iconic bald eagles, mule deer, cougars and black bears.
Read more >Conservation groups granted intervention to defend Utah national monuments
A Utah federal judge has granted a motion to intervene filed by conservation groups in defense of the Biden administration’s restoration of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monuments.
Read more >We want to stay in touch with you
Receive regular updates from WildEarth Guardians in your inbox.
info@wildearthguardians.org | © 2022 WildEarth Guardians | Historical Archives | Privacy Policy | Donor Log In