Issue Position: The Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act

Issue Position

The Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act facilitates the development of an underground copper mine that will create new American jobs, will reduce our dependence on foreign sources of energy and minerals, and will generate significant revenues for federal and state treasuries. Once the operation is running, this mine will provide 25% of the United States' copper supply and will be the largest copper mine in North America. The Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act will create 4,000 new jobs and will generate $60 billion for Arizona's economy over the life of the mine. This legislation is not only a jobs bill; it's a conservation bill. The lands the federal government acquires in the exchange are highly-coveted recreational and conservation areas.

For those not familiar with land exchanges--which are common practice in the West--the bill allows for a consolidation of a checker-board of lands to ensure maximum mineral production. The bill authorizes and facilitates the exchange of land between Resolution Copper, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management. Federal legislation is required because the exchange involves third parties. The exchange will bring into federal stewardship 5,344 acres of high priority conservation land in exchange for 2,422 acres of national forest system land containing one of the largest undeveloped copper resources in the world. Resolution Copper already has unpatented mining claims that cover 75 % of the parcel

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