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EPA APPROVES STORMWATER PERMIT FOR CARLOTA COPPER PROJECT; CONDITIONS INCLUDE CLEANUP OF EXISTING POLLUTION IN PINTO CREEK

Release Date: 7/24/2000
Contact Information: Dave Schmidt, U.S.EPA,(415) 744-1578

     SAN FRANCISCO -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today announced it has approved a stormwater discharge permit that includes Carlota Copper Company's agreement to clean up existing copper pollution of Pinto Creek before proceeding with plans for a new copper mine on Tonto National Forest and private land about 70 miles east of Phoenix.

     The federal Clean Water Act permit allows discharge of stormwater runoff from waste rock piles into Pinto Creek and Powers Gulch.  During most years, no discharge at all is expected.  Discharges to Pinto Creek are allowed only in the event of a 100-year/24-hour storm event, and to Powers Gulch only from a 10-year/24 hour storm event.  The chance of such storms in any given year is one in 100 for a 100-year event, and one in 10 for a 10-year event.
     
     Pinto Creek is currently polluted by uncontrolled copper discharges from the inactive Gibson Copper Mine, which operated from the 1960s to the 1980s, among other sources.  Under the terms of the permit, Carlota has agreed to clean up a portion of the Gibson site, reducing polluted runoff from the site before starting work on the new copper mine.  The net effect will be to reduce copper pollution in Pinto Creek, since in most years nothing will be discharged by Carlota.

     To further ensure reductions in Pinto Creek's copper levels, the EPA and the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) on July 19 jointly released a draft pollution limit known as a TMDL, or Total Maximum Daily Load, for copper in Pinto Creek.  The ADEQ is coordinating the public participation process to finalize the draft TMDL. The draft is subject to public comment for 60 days.  Comments should be addressed to:

                          Jalyn Cummings
           Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
              3033 N. Central Ave., Mail Code M0301D
                        Phoenix, AZ 85012

     In a related action, the EPA adopted an Environmental Impact Statement and an Environmental Assessment on the Carlota Copper Project completed earlier by the U. S. Forest Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  The Carlota Project, as planned, will affect 1,428 acres of land.  Mining and ore processing is expected to go on for 20 years.  Carlota Copper Co. is a subsidiary of Canada-based Cambior Inc.