In a move to protect and preserve Southern Arizona’s water supply, Augusta Resource Corp reports that it has already stored a full two years’ worth of water needed to operate its Rosemont Copper project within the Tucson Active Management Area (Tucson AMA basin). By the end of this year a total of 15,000 acre feet of water delivered by the Central Arizona Project (CAP) is expected to be stored in the greater Tucson aquifer, bringing the level stored for Rosemont Copper to a three-year supply.

“We have said all along that we are very serious about environmental responsibility and we plan to develop and operate Rosemont Copper in a way that no other mine in this country has done before. Water conservation is one of the most important components our plan,” said Gil Clausen, President and CEO of Augusta. “By purchasing and storing excess CAP water in advance of our usage, we are not only ensuring that we won’t deplete water from Southern Arizona, we are actually going to leave more than we will use. 

“We will import 105% of the water Rosemont Copper will require, leaving the Tucson AMA basin with a 5% net gain,” Clausen explained.

In addition to Rosemont Copper’s unique approach to supplying water, the project will employ water conservation and recycling techniques never before implemented by an Arizona copper mining facility. These initiatives are anticipated to yield a 50 to 60% reduction in water use, compared with traditional mining practices. The details of these plans will be published shortly in the company’s comprehensive plan of operations and feasibility study for Rosemont Copper.

Rosemont Copper will produce copper, molybdenum and silver for 20 years in a remote area of Pima County west of Highway 83. The Rosemont property has had a long history of ranching and mining activity. The property is located some 50 km southeast of Tucson, Arizona, and contains a potentially world class open-pit deposit.