OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION FOR THE STATE OF ARIZONA

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1 Save the Scenic Santa Ritas Gayle Hartmann, President 8987 E. Tanque Verde # Tucson, AZ OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION FOR THE STATE OF ARIZONA Save the Scenic Santa Ritas Appellants No WQAB No WQAB No WQAB v. (Consolidated) DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY, Respondent RESPONSE FROM SAVE THE SCENIC SANTA RITAS TO ROSEMONT COPPER COMPANY S MOTION TO DISMISS JOINDER TO APPEAL v. ROSEMONT COPPER COMPANY, Intervenor and Respondent

2 Under authority of A.A.C. R (D), We, Save the Scenic Santa Ritas ( SSSR ), respond to Intervenor/Respondent Rosemont Copper Company s motion to dismiss our Joinder in the Notice of Appeal filed by Gregory C. and Carol A. Shinsky. ARGUMENT: 1. Save the Scenic Santa Ritas (SSSR) was formed in 1996 with a mission to protect the scenic, aesthetic, recreational, environmental and wildlife values of the Santa Rita Mountains, Patagonia Mountains, Canelo Hills and San Rafael Valley through education and outreach, including protection of these areas from degradation due to mining activities. We are especially concerned with protecting public lands within these areas and believe these lands have a much greater value to the region when preserved for the above-mentioned purposes rather than their mineral extraction value. We lead the public opposition to the proposed Rosemont mine, with endorsements from a large and diverse coalition of nearly 100 community groups, organizations and businesses, representing over 80,000 individuals living in the communities of Green Valley, Patagonia, Sahuarita, Sonoita, Tucson, Vail, as well as individuals visiting as tourists from other regions of the country and the world who enjoy this world-class birding and recreational area (see As a 501(c)3 organization, we regularly receive donations from many individuals who expect us, on their behalf, to continue our work to protect the Santa Rita Mountains and surrounding areas from the harmful impacts of mining. Rosemont claims there is not a reasonable probability that our organization and the various groups and individuals we represent will be affected by their action; however, it is completely incorrect to say that our organization and members would not be affected by this permit, and in

3 general, the proposed mine plan of operations. Rosemont s claim is incorrect for the following reasons: The mine plan of operations clearly states that it would use roughly 3,500 acres of public land (land that SSSR has been actively working to protect since 1996) within the Coronado National Forest (CNF) to construct part of the pit and the nine facilities the APP would regulate. Those acres and adjacent lands in the CNF are currently used by our members for various recreational purposes, including bicycling, hiking, camping, equestrian activities, picnicking, photography, birding, caving, hang gliding, rock hounding, wildlife study, ATV riding, amateur astronomy, botany, geocaching, orienteering, running and hunting. Many of our members have developed a deep appreciation for the spiritual value the area has to offer, and rely on the area as a component of their personal spiritual wellness. Our members depend on a fully functional ecosystem within which to live, work and recreate. The granting of this permit would lead to the impairment of this ecosystem, with immeasurable negative impacts to the economic, environmental and spiritual wellbeing of our members. If the APP is approved as written with no discharge limits set, contaminants could make their way into area ground water and downstream water resources for many months before a problem is identified and limits are set. The area that is down-gradient from the proposed site is not currently adequately defined and the facility composition itself has yet to be finalized. Analysis of potential extreme weather events suggests harmful contaminants could very well make their way into downstream water resources, the outer limit of which is also not defined. People and biological resources impacted would include those immediately down-gradient to the proposed facility, but also could have

4 impacts as far as Tucson and beyond. Many of our members reside, work and recreate in close proximity to the proposed facility as well as in the greater Tucson Basin, which in 2008 served approximately 744,000 people, and is projected to serve 990,000 people by 2030 (see Arizona Department of Commerce Arizona population estimates, 2009). Most certainly, no matter how the area down-gradient of the proposed site is defined, contaminants could impact the very environments of the Santa Rita Mountains it is our mission to protect. Contamination would result in habitat loss for wildlife as well as an enormous and expensive cleanup effort to protect the greater Tucson area water supply. The APP concedes the likelihood of the open pit having a dewatering effect, noting that area springs will dry up, and SSSR members living in this area will likely need to increase the depth of their wells, and may eventually see their wells dry up completely. The dewatering effect will impact the entire Rosemont Valley and adjacent areas within the CNF, with a ripple effect on all of the people, land, air, wildlife and water SSSR is working to protect. Numerous endangered, threatened, candidate, and sensitive species would be negatively impacted by the proposed activities. Impacts to wildlife species would occur through habitat loss and potential direct mortality. Loss of biodiversity in the area will result in degraded scenic and ascetic experiences for our members who live, work and recreate in the area. Degradation from changes in groundwater discharges due to the issuance of this permit would have major socioeconomic impacts on our members in southern Arizona. As suggested by Dr. Tom Power (The Failure of the Rosemont Mine DEIS to Adequately Analyze the Socioeconomic Impacts of the Proposed Mine see the commercial development

5 of National Forest lands in a way that damaged the natural amenities those lands provided, could damage the local economy, leading to both lower levels of economic development and lower levels of economic well-being for residents. The bottom line: changes in groundwater discharges and dewatering in the area as a result of this permit would impact the landscape amenities of the Santa Ritas, one of the special places that makes Tucson and surrounding communities a great place to live and work. Loss of landscape amenities such as this would result in fewer of our members living, doing business, and recreating in the area, and in time, could offset much of, if not all of the alleged economic benefits the mine is purported to bring to the greater Tucson area. Groundwater discharges and dewatering as a result of this permit would negatively impact the Santa Rita Mountains. Our objective is to protect these mountains and the surrounding areas. The proposed mine, and the issuance of the APP, would result in a loss of biodiversity and degradation to scenic, aesthetic, spiritual, recreational, environmental and wildlife opportunities, which in time would most certainly negatively impact the socioeconomic and overall well-being of our members. To date we have submitted comments and testimony to various agencies during the public comment periods for each required permit. Specifically, we submitted comments on the proposed APP to ADEQ dated February 3, We have been engaged in the NEPA process with the CNF from the beginning, and submitted comments and testimony during scoping and on the draft environmental impact statement, draft Clean Water Act permit, Rosemont s application to Pima County for the Air Quality permit and the proposed permit for Rosemont s transmission line.

6 2. We have reviewed and agree with the arguments set forth in the Amended Notice of Appeal filed by Gregory C. and Carol A. Shinsky. Our interests and concerns are aligned with theirs. We believe that we should be allowed to join their appeal. 3. We request that approval of the APP be suspended until this appeal is resolved. 4. We request oral argument under A.A.C. R (E). CONCLUSION AND RELIEF REQUESTED: We believe based on this long-standing involvement and the probability that we will be affected by the proposed action that our joinder is appropriate and proper. We RESPECTFULLY REQUEST THAT ROSEMONT COPPER COMPANY S MOTION TO DISMISS OUR JOINDER TO THE SHINKY S APPEAL BE DENIED. DATE: 6/25/2012 SIGNED: GAYLE HARTMANN President, Save the Scenic Santa Ritas

7 ORIGINAL of the foregoing was Electronically filed this 25 th day of June, 2012, with: Office of Administrative Hearings 1400 West Washington Street, Suite Thomas Shedden Administrative Law Judge Office of Administrative Hearings 1400 West Washington Street, Suite 100 Toni Towne, Clerk Arizona Water Quality Appeals Board Management Services Division 100 N. 15 th Avenue, Suite Leslie Kyman Cooper Assistant Attorney General Office of the Attorney General 1275 West Washington Street Attorney for ADEQ Lorena Ayala Office of Administrative Counsel Arizona Department of Environmental Quality 1110 West Washington Street Richard Mendolia Arizona Department of Environmental Quality Mining Unit, Groundwater Section 1110 West Washington Street

8 Christopher Munns Assistant Attorney General Solicitor General s Office 1275 West Washington Street Christopher.Munns@azag.gov COPY of the foregoing ed this 25 th day of June, 2012, to: Harlan C. Agnew Deputy County Attorney Pima County Attorney s Office 32 N. Stone Avenue Tucson, Arizona Harlan.agnew@pcao.pima.gov Nan Stockholm Walden Richard S. Walden P.O. Box 7 Sahuarita, Arizona nswalden@greenvalleypecan.com rsw@greenvalleypecan.com Gregory C. and Carol A. Shinsky E. Hilton Ranch Road Vail, Arizona gccats@gmail.com G. Van Velsor Wolf Jr. Snell & Wilmer L.L.P. 400 East Van Buren Street Phoenix, Arizona vwolf@swlaw.com Attorney for Appellants Norman D. James Todd C. Wiley Fennemore Craig, P.C North Central Avenue Suite 2600 Phoenix, Arizona njames@fclaw.com twiley@fclaw.com Attorneys for Intervenor-Respondent

9 COPY of the foregoing ed or mailed this 25th day of June, 2012, to: Rosemont Copper Company P.O. Box Tucson, Arizona Rosemont Copper Company 4500 Cherry Creek South Drive Suite Denver, Colorado Sarah Barchas High Haven Ranch P.O. Box 246 Sonoita, Arizona Melanie Emerson Sky Island Alliance 300 East University Boulevard, Suite 270 Tucson, Arizona Arizona Mining Reform Coalition P.O. Box Tucson, Arizona Gayle Hartmann Save the Scenic Santa Ritas 8987 E. Tanque Verde, # Tucson, Arizona Josef E. Marlow Sonoran Institute 44 East Broadway Boulevard, Suite 350 Tucson, Arizona Randy Serraglio Center for Biological Diversity P.O. Box 710 Tucson, Arizona

10 Dino J. DeConcini 2335 E. Elm Street Tucson, Arizona Elizabeth B. Murfee DeConcini 2335 E. Elm Street Tucson, Arizona Thomas F. Purdon 706 E. Bent Branch Place Green Valley, Arizona Arnold B. Urken 1104 N. Rams Head Road Green Valley, Arizona Carolyn Campbell Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection 300 East University Boulevard, Suite 120 Tucson, Arizona John M. Kozma 2468 East Overview Lane Green Valley, Arizona James and Sherry Pepper P.O. Box 1326 Sonoita, Arizona David S. Steele 1661 N. Swan, Suite 116 Tucson, Arizona Steven Pawlowski Sierra Club Grand Canyon Chapter 202 East McDowell Road, Suite 277 Phoenix, Arizona Stanley R. Hart 4671 East Madera Vista Road Green Valley, Arizona 85614

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