Southern Arizona’s natural landscapes, wildlife, and outdoor recreation economy are part of what makes this region special. From Patagonia’s trails and birding to the San Rafael Valley’s open spaces, eco-tourism and environmental stewardship are not abstract concepts — they are livelihoods, traditions, and shared values.
That’s why how a mining project is designed matters just as much as whether it is built.
The U.S. Forest Service released its Draft Record of Decision and Final Environmental Impact Statement for South32 Hermosa in Santa Cruz County. It is the most significant federal environmental review milestone for the project to date and represents years of environmental study, community input, and analysis, including analysis by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
For those of us working on Hermosa, this moment shows that a modern mining project can be shaped by community feedback, refined by science, and designed to coexist with the landscapes that define Southern Arizona.
From the start, South32 designed Hermosa to reduce impacts, avoid sensitive areas, and respond directly to what community members highlighted as key considerations prior to submitting our mine plan of operations. That is how the federal process should work. And in this case, it did.
After reviewing the full environmental record and completing its analysis in the Final Environmental Impact Statement, the Forest Service determined that its selected alternative best meets the purpose and need of fully developing the project while minimizing environmental impacts.
What does that mean in practical terms?
It means a more compact project footprint and the least surface disturbance on National Forest lands compared to other alternatives. It means shorter and relocated access roads that bypass population centers and reduced traffic through Patagonia and along Harshaw Road, helping preserve recreation routes and eco-tourism corridors. It means a redesigned dry-stack tailings facility moved to avoid sensitive plant species identified through on-the-ground biodiversity surveys. It means reduced emissions as natural gas would no longer need to be transported to site.
It also means that water protection — a top concern in Southern Arizona — has been central to project design.
South32 has monitored water quality since 2016 to establish baseline conditions and inform engineering decisions as well as additional mitigation measures for groundwater and spring monitoring and water treatment. The selected alternative includes recharge approaches intended to keep water in the watershed. Only a portion of treated discharge would flow through Harshaw Creek, with the remainder returned to support aquifer recharge high in the Patagonia mountains.
These are not theoretical commitments. They are conditions embedded in the federal decision itself that South 32 has committed to — enforceable requirements tied to project authorization, not optional add-ons.
Wildlife protection has followed the same pattern.
More than a decade of field surveys for plants and aquatic species helped identify sensitive habitats and guide infrastructure placement to avoid direct impacts. Wildlife crossings along the primary access road are designed for large mammals. An adaptive management framework will require ongoing monitoring and adjustments if conditions change, with an objective of having no-net-loss of biodiversity over the life of the project.
This is what responsible development looks like in practice: avoid where possible, minimize where unavoidable, and continuous monitoring.
It also reflects a broader shift in how mining projects are built in the United States.
South32 designed Hermosa as an underground operation, using cement paste backfill to reduce surface tailings and limit subsidence. Dry-stack tailings replace conventional slurry ponds, offering higher safety and lower water use. Automation and a remote operations center in Nogales will reduce daily commuting traffic and improve worker safety.
The project is also designed to connect to the electric grid rather than rely solely on on-site generators — reducing emissions while supporting regional energy infrastructure.
Public participation remains central to what comes next.
The Draft Record of Decision opens a review period for prior public comment participants to weigh in and for the Forest Service to consider them before issuing a final decision. That step reinforces what this process has shown so far: transparency and engagement are not obstacles to development — they are what make shared value and responsible development possible.
We can lead in showing how critical mineral projects are done differently in the 21st century — with smaller disturbance footprints, stronger protections, and designs shaped by the communities they touch. Zinc and manganese are essential for everything from infrastructure to clean energy and advanced manufacturing. But their value depends on how they are produced.
Eco-tourism, outdoor recreation, and environmental stewardship are not at odds with modern industry when projects are built with care, restraint, and accountability. The Draft Record of Decision and Final Environmental Impact Statement demonstrate that those priorities can coexist when science, public input, and disciplined design are taken seriously.
We look forward to continuing this dialogue as the Forest Service moves toward a Final Record of Decision later this year and as we work to deliver critical minerals, family-sustaining jobs, and long-term benefits for the communities that call this region home.
