US Forest Service kicks off federal permitting process for South32’s Hermosa project

While
all
of
Hermosa’s
mining
will
be
done
from
private
lands
and
require
several
state
permits
to
begin
initial
development,
a
federal
permit
is
required
to
develop
the
project. 

Located
in
the
Patagonia
Mountains,
about
80
kilometres
southeast
of
Tucson,
Arizona,
Hermosa
comprises
the
zinc-lead-silver
Taylor
sulphide
deposit
and
the
zinc-manganese-silver
Clark
oxide
deposit.
In
addition
to
these
deposits,
Hermosa
has
a
highly
prospective
broader
land
package
that
includes
the
copper-lead-zinc-silver
Peake
exploration
target
and
the
Flux
prospect.

Hermosa
is
the
only
advanced
US
mining
project
capable
of
producing
two
federally
designated
critical
minerals,
zinc
and
manganese.
Last
year,
it
became
the
first
project
to
be
added
to
the
United
States’

FAST-41
permitting
process.

The
scoping
procedure
that
just
started
is
specifically
focused
on
the
scope
of
the
environmental
analysis,
alternatives
that
meet
the
purpose
and
need
of
the
project,
and
receiving
information
that
will
help
the
USFS
understand
the
environmental
impacts
of
the
project’s
proposed
expansion
of
ancillary
infrastructure
onto
Forest
Service
lands. 

Overall,
federal
authorization
is
expected
to
take
two
more
years
and
include
multiple
rounds
of
public
feedback
and
discussion. 

“South32’s
Hermosa
project
aims
to
set
a
new
standard
for
sustainable
mining,
with
advanced
technology.
Because
we
are
building
it
from
the
ground
up,
it
is
being
designed
to
minimize
environmental
impact,
including
operating
on
a
limited
surface
footprint,
using
approximately
75%
less
water
than
other
mines
in
the
region
and
achieving
the
goal
of
no
net
loss
for
biodiversity,”
Brent
Musslewhite,
Hermosa’s
director
of
permitting
and
approvals,
said
in
a
media
statement.
“We
encourage
community
members
to
participate
in
the
Forest
Service’s
public
comment
process.
Working
together,
we
can
strengthen
the
domestic
supply
of
critical
minerals
needed
for
clean
energy
technologies
and
national
defence,
reduce
America’s
reliance
on
foreign
countries
and
transform
the
local
economy.”

After
a
recent
board
approval
of

$2.16
billion
in
funding
to
develop
the
zinc-lead-silver
deposit,
Hermosa
has
become
the
largest
private
investment
in
Southern
Arizona’s
history.