Hermosa Mine could produce essential minerals, impact the environment
Pat Risner, president of South32, and Carolyn Shafer, president of PARA, talk about the proposed Hermosa Mine from their different perspectives.
Mark Henle, The Republic
The federal government wants an Arizona environmental agency to tighten regulations on a permit it issued to a highly criticized mine slated to operate in southern Arizona’s Patagonia Mountains.
But while the changes address complaints voiced by critics, some watchdog organizations say they aren’t enough.
“It’s disappointing the EPA didn’t formally object, but their comment letter indicates there are some serious issues that need to be resolved,” said Jeremy Nichols, senior advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity. Nichols said the center plans to appeal the permit.
Australian company South32 submitted its Class I air quality permit to the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality in October, seeking to continue construction of the Hermosa mine and eventually conduct mining operations. After a public comment period earlier this year, the state submitted its proposed permit to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for review.
The air quality permit is required for the mining of two deposits: Taylor sulfide, a zinc-lead-silver deposit that will be mined for zinc and lead; and Clark oxide, a zinc-manganese-silver deposit that will be mined for manganese. Because these mining operations are expected to emit regulated pollutants into the air, the Arizona environmental agency said an air quality permit is required.
EPA seeks to close loophole, add specificity to ‘vague’ permit
Critics of the original draft were concerned the mine would pollute the region, and said the draft permit was not stringent enough and lacked enforceability.
The concern of enforceability was addressed in the EPA’s comments published July 24. In the letter, the agency asked the state to add more details about monitoring and recordkeeping requirements for periodic opacity monitoring.
The EPA also asked the state to remove an emergency provision, which Nichols called a “loophole.” This provision allows a polluter to avoid punishment if emissions are released during an emergency.
In its comments to the state, the EPA reiterated a determination made last year to remove the emergency provision.
“These provisions, which have never been required elements of state operating permit programs, are being removed because they are inconsistent with the EPA’s interpretation of the enforcement structure of theClean Air Act in light of prior court decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit,” said the EPA in its comments.
The EPA asked the state for a total of 15 changes, including adding monitoring requirements for dust collection systems, and substantiating its claims the facility does not require compliance assurance monitoring.
Other comments requested the state to add specificity and clarifications to the permit, reflecting public criticism the draft permit was “too vague.”
Advocates ‘disappointed the EPA’s comments weren’t more forceful’
The Patagonia Resource Alliance, a watchdog organization criticized the EPA’s comments.
“We’re disappointed the EPA’s comments weren’t more forceful,” Joni Stellar, the chair of the Patagonia Resource Alliance, adding that the organization will continue to hold the state accountable to environmental laws and regulations.
South32 did not respond to requests for comment for this story, but in the past has maintained potential inhalation exposure to respirable manganese from operating the Hermosa mine will not pose a health risk for people in nearby communities.
Although local community members are asking the government to reject the permit, the federal government added the Hermosa mine to the federal Fast-41 permitting process in May 2023, which aims to streamline and add transparency to the permitting process. It’s part of a broader push by the Biden administration to develop domestic supply chains for minerals critical to the development of emerging green energy technology.
A 60-day appeal period began after the EPA’s 45-day review ended on July 24. The public can submit a petition to the EPA to veto the permit if they believe there are deficiencies that have not been addressed.
Reach the reporter at [email protected]. The Republic’s coverage of southern Arizona is funded, in part, with a grant from Report for America. Support Arizona news coverage with a tax-deductible donation at supportjournalism.azcentral.com.
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Publish date : 2024-08-13 03:00:00
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