The U.S. Forest Service on Wednesday issued its Final Environmental Impact statement and Record of Decision for the Hermosa Critical Minerals Project, clearing the final major federal hurdle for South32 to construct mine facilities and expand operations onto Coronado National Forest lands in the Patagonia Mountains.

The decision, met by quick condemnation by environmental groups, was announced in a 163-page document issued by Kerwin S. Dewberry, Forest Supervisor for the Coronado National Forest. The final decision specifies a number of selected alternatives to the Mine Plan of Operation submitted by South32.

Key components of the selected alternatives include:

  • Construction of a new primary access road across Forest Service lands, connecting with Flux Canyon Road and State Highway 82.
  • A 225.7-acre tailings storage facility and underdrain collection pond on Forest Service land.
  • Installation of a 7.2-mile, 138-kV overhead transmission line on Forest Service land.
  • Direct discharge of treated mine water into Goldbaum Canyon, Mowry Wash and Harshaw Creek.
  • Underground mining beneath Forest Service land, accessed through mine shafts on private land.
  • Monitoring and mitigation measures for groundwater-dependent ecosystems and water wells.

The primary minerals that will be targeted at the Hermosa project include manganese and zinc, which are identified as “critical minerals” by the U.S. Geological Survey. Permitting for the mine was expedited under Title 41 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act of 2015 (FAST-41).

U.S. Senators Mark Kelly and Ruben Gallego both issued statements in support of the project, citing it as an economic driver for Santa Cruz County, but local and national conservation organizations criticized the Forest Service’s approval as premature and failing to resolve fundamental legal questions.

Patagonia Area Resource Alliance (PARA), the Center for Biological Diversity and other conservation organizations submitted hundreds of pages of technical comments and formal objections.

PARA issued a news release saying the Forest Service approval fails to fully address long-term impacts on groundwater, streams, wildlife habitat – including for endangered species such as jaguars and Mexican spotted owls – air quality, truck traffic and public health.

“Our community has spent years participating in this process because we believed the agencies responsible for protecting our public lands would carefully evaluate the facts before making a decision,” said Anna Darian, PARA’s executive director. “Instead, the Forest Service approved this project while serious legal questions remain unresolved, leaving many residents wondering whether these agencies are still serving the public interest.”

Russ McSpadden, Southwest Conservation Advocate for the Center for Biological Diversity, described the approval as “disgraceful.”

“Bulldozing new roads and building a tailings dumpsite on federally protected habitat for jaguars and Mexican spotted owls will push these endangered animals closer to extinction,” McSpadden said.

PARA and its partners submitted a formal objection letter, and Darian addressed three notable concerns:

  • Approval of a tailings storage facility without determining whether it is legally or environmentally suitable.
  • Failure to adequately analyze the project’s impact on wildlife and habitat connectivity.
  • Granting 31 exceptions to the existing Coronado National Forest Plan despite acknowledged conflicts with the Plan.

Darian said PARA and its team are meeting behind the scenes to evaluate their options. “It’s certainly not the end of the story,” she said.