Gov. Jan Brewer is throwing her support behind a large and controversial plan by a Canadian firm to mine copper in Florence by pumping weak acid into the ground.
Brewer attended a closed-door meeting Tuesday with executives of Curis Resources and other area business leaders, a meeting that was not on her public schedule or disclosed ahead of time. Gubernatorial press aide Matthew Benson said no one was told because the event was secret and that Brewer was only “there to learn as much as possible about the project.”
“She hasn’t made a final decision on the project,” Benson said.
But that’s not what she told those present. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to stand together with you tonight in support of such a wonderful economic development opportunity,” Brewer said in prepared remarks obtained after a public records request by Capitol Media Services. “I hope that we’ll be able to see this through and that Florence, Pinal County and Arizona will continue to thrive.”
And the company, in a press release issued Wednesday, described the event as a “rally in support of the Florence copper project.”
The Arizona Guardian reported that there were about 30 to 40 protesters outside the meeting at the Windmill Winery but that Brewer was ushered in through a different door. They have raised questions of whether the weak acid solution might affect the groundwater in the area.
Benson, asked whether the governor would meet with those landowners, said, “I’m not aware we have had a request.”
According to the company, it acquired the property, entirely within the town boundaries, in February 1910. It has 1,342 acres of land, including 1,182 acres it owns outright and another 160 acres of state mineral leases.
Plans are for what is called “in-situ copper recovery,” where a weak acid is injected into the ground where it dissolves the copper. The solution is then pumped to the surface through other wells.
Company officials say that all of the solution is recaptured and that groundwater is not endangered.
Benson said Brewer’s interest is in the jobs that would be created, a theme the governor noted in her speech.
“You know, contrary to popular belief in some political circles, state government can’t create jobs,” she said. “What we can do, though, is create an environment that’s conducive to job growth and friendly to small businesses and entrepreneurs.”
Benson said Brewer has no say in whether the facility ever operates, saying those decisions rest with local officials. He acknowledged, though, that the company will require some permits from the state Department of Environmental Quality, which is headed by a Brewer appointee.
Chuck Coughlin, whose company represents Curis, figures the facility eventually would create 170 to 250 full-time jobs.
Some of the objections are coming from Southwest Value Partners, an investment group co-founded by Phoenix Suns owner Robert Sarver, which bought 4,500 acres adjacent to the site around the same time with plans to develop housing.
Justin Merritt, the company’s senior account manager, said the fact that the company will be injecting only a 2 percent to 3 percent acid solution into the ground does not tell the full story.
He said that, by definition, Curis is using the acid solution for the express purpose of putting the copper ore beneath the ground into a solution.
“When you’re pulling it out of the ground, you’re going to have all kinds of metals and other chemicals that are coming out of the ground,” Merritt said. And the more often the solution is recycled, he said, the greater the concentration.
Coughlin said the company will have to meet environmental regulations to protect the groundwater. Beyond that, he said the wells Curis is planning will go down 450 feet into the bedrock, below the aquifer where other landowners would be drawing their water.
MesaAZGuy posted at 6:05 pm on Wed, Aug 3, 2011.
Copper jobs or houses??? Gee, that's a tough one.
LinMesa posted at 10:52 am on Thu, Aug 4, 2011.
"Company officials say that all of the solution is recaptured and that groundwater is not endangered." But isn't that what they have all said? I wouldn't want to take that chance if I lived there.
AZReader posted at 3:11 pm on Thu, Aug 4, 2011.
Coughlin is Brewer's BFF and closest political advisor -- as such, he is the most powerful man in AZ that no one knows about. He also represents Curis. Odd how this point was missed in the article.
Super-B posted at 3:48 am on Mon, Aug 22, 2011.
Coughlin is Brewers BFF? if you're going to make that claim back it up with source(s), ditto for "and closest political adviser". There are too many mindless sheep around that will accept what you wrote as facts. Not saying what you are claiming is inaccurate, but bold statements such as these which hint at special interest favoritism and in a worst case scenario corruption, IMHO, force upon you a duty to prove your statements to the best of your ability even if they are opinions.
Super-B posted at 4:16 am on Mon, Aug 22, 2011.
Justin Merritt, the company’s senior account manager (for the group wanting to develop housing on an adjacent parcel), said the fact that the company will be injecting only a 2 percent to 3 percent acid solution into the ground does not tell the full story. He said that, by definition, Curis is using the acid solution for the express purpose of putting the copper ore beneath the ground into a solution. “When you’re pulling it out of the ground, you’re going to have all kinds of metals and other chemicals that are coming out of the ground,” Merritt said. And the more often the solution is recycled, he said, the greater the concentration."
Considering how pervasive profit & greed are in our society today I place little merit on Mr. Merritts comments. He also needs to back up his claims, he states the following “When you’re pulling it out of the ground, you’re going to have all kinds of metals and other chemicals that are coming out of the ground." OK, and you know this how exactly? What is your source(s) Mr. Merritt? Which chemicals,metals are you referring too, what harm can they potentially cause if any, and what does the company claim they will do with this chemical/metal laden solution? He throws this "fact" out there as if it's an issue of concern but with more information we could potentially find out if his point is meaningless, or not?
Reporters in the so called "main stream media" are flat out negligent in their writing of articles when it comes to either challenging claims made by people or better explaining the claims so we the reader have a working understanding of the issue overall and the validity of comments. For example, the reporter of this article should have approached the company with the claims made by Mr. Merritt and asked them number one if what he claims is true and number two, if true, what are they going to do as a mining company to address it? I'm sure if the company read this article they would be eager to take on the statements made by a profiteering home builder, in order to put the minds of the public at ease. But whatever they say, those claims should be researched and if need be challenged as well.
The media has a DUTY to make sure topics they choose to address and print in their newspapers are vetted to the point where the reader can develop an informed opinion on a particular issue. This article, from my perspective at least, raises all kinds of questions in my mind, and leaves me feeling uneducated about what really matters in this debate overall, whether to mine or not, specifically using the acid solution method, and the possible risks/benefits this project presents to the public.