The Copper Mine - GRRRR

I wrote the following in a pique of frustration. It was intended for the local newspaper but posting it here was the only catharsis I need at the moment:

On the evening Tuesday, August 4, I saw what looked like a brush fire in the desert across the street from my home. I moved a little to look between the houses and my first reaction was ‘darn' damn it, it’s mine tailings again. They were whipped up and swirling across the top and a tower of the white, cement-like dust was rising into the sky. [I reported it to the editor of the newspaper, who reached out to the Pima Dept of Environmental Quality (PDEQ). He was told there were air quality issues in Corona de Tucson and Vail but not in Green Valley. My photos seemed to prove otherwise. They have since been shared with the county.]

Many might remember the utter and complete disaster visited upon communities closest to the desert in October 2018. Nothing has visibly changed since then and they continue to use the same excuse – the wind was blowing. The most recently reported incident was this January.

This mine seems to get away with murder when it comes to fines and penalties.  From what I could tell from GV News archived reports, there have been quite a large number of tailings incidents over the years. Donations to the community end up totaling a lot more than actual monetary fines.  I think it's great that Freeport McMoRan seems to act as such a community partner but every time that I see their name plastered on something I become more skeptical about their motives.

There are three things that bother me the most:
     1. the overall ineffectiveness and impotence of the PDEQ;
     2. that PDEQ doesn't have air quality monitors anywhere near the   mines which seems counter-intuitive considering it's these copper mines which generally affect the air quality in GV and Sahuarita;
     3. that making a $200,000 donation to a town park with a relatively small fine is ludicrous. I can’t help but wonder if the January 2020 incident prompted Freeport-McMoRan to make their donation of $50,000 to GVR for Pickleball court amenities.

The corporation can use the $200,000 park and $50,000 GVR "donations" as tax write-offs, negating any civil penalties, the last of which was $20,000. Frankly, it’s also an attempt to buy off our community which I find offensive.  Can we use the money? Absolutely. But at what cost? I need to trust the quality of the air I breathe. That outweighs any park or pickleball amenities. In 2018, the company [Freeport McMoRan] ranked at number 176 on the Fortune 500 list. 

From the most recently available data, which is six years old, “the Political Economy Research Institute ranked Freeport-McMoRan 13th among corporations emitting airborne pollutants in the U.S. The ranking is based on emission quantities and toxicity." Has anything changed?  Even more disturbing is how 'incidents' are perceived to be treated so cavalierly by the PDEQ. In many ways, I understand their hands are tied by some laws dating back to the 19th century and a more recently updated law by the Arizona Legislature easing many restrictions on the industry.  Remember that when you vote this year. Does the current majority really care about you?

I get so tired of these enormous international corporations running roughshod over small communities like ours with few consequences. Clean air and clean water are the essential elements needed to sustain human life.  It’s time to hold both the mining industry and our regulatory agencies accountable.

If you got to the end, thanks for reading it. It was windy when I went out to take the photos and that crap got in my eyes, nose and throat.  I've had a brain crushing headache since.