Recently, Coronado National Forest officials said they will release a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) on the Canadian-based Augusta Resource’s proposed Rosemont Mine in the Santa Rita Mountains by the end of “the second quarter of 2010.”

Forest Service spokeswoman Heidi Schewel confirmed that after receiving public comment on the draft EIS, the agency would be seeking to release a record of decision approving or denying the mine as proposed by the end of 2010. Previously, Coronado intended to release a final EIS in the fall of 2009.

The dates are consistent with ones discussed by Deputy Undersecretary of Agriculture Jay Jensen when he visited the area in late October accompanied by U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz. At that time Jensen suggested that the United States Department of Agriculture, which is in charge of the Forest Service, and the Coronado would seek to release a draft EIS by June. Jensen said that the draft EIS, among other things, will evaluate the legal grounds by which the mine might not be approved to operate.

There are many potential areas in question at Rosemont that may be evaluated within and outside of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) that governs the writing of an EIS before a record of decision can be made. The Forest Service has, to date, taken the legal position that they can only require that the impacts of a mine be “mitigated” under the 1872 Mining Act.

Other legal authorities, and other administrations, have believed that there may be a number of legal grounds that could determine that a large open pit mine would have to promise in an EIS more than it can deliver in practice. Examples could be that certain perennial sources of water are not dried up and/or that it could never pollute ground or surface water. If these could not be guaranteed, then the mining impacts could not be mitigated.

U.S. Reps. Raul Grijlava, D-Ariz., and Giffords have also asked the USDA that Rosemont claims be validated to determine that they either are profitable for mining and, if so, that they will be used for mining and not for processing ore. The majority of Rosemont claims are to be used for tailings disposal. Additionally, Grijalva and Giffords have co-sponsored legislation to withdraw land in the Coronado National Forest including Rosemont claims from future mining.

If the legislation passes, then all of Augusta’s claims will require the validation described above. Issues of claim validity are separate from an EIS, but can impact the Record of Decision to approve or deny mining.

(Editor’s Note: Kamp is the environmental liaison for Wick News Service.)