Jaguar video generates widespread media attention on threats posed by Rosemont Mine

Posted on February 5, 2016 by admin

A wildlife surveillance video capturing movements of the only known wild jaguar in the United States is focusing national attention on the impacts of the proposed Rosemont copper project on the big cat and other endangered species.

The mine would be constructed in the biologically-rich Santa Rita Mountains that hosts a dozen endangered species including the jaguar.

The video taken by the Center for Biological Diversity and Conservation CATalyst, shows the male jaguar named “El Jefe” roaming through mountain woodlands and a stream that would be impacted by the proposed open-pit copper mine. Continue reading →

Posted in Endangered Species, Hudbay | 4 Comments

Peruvian communities begin 72-hour strike protesting Hudbay’s Constancia Mine as company’s stock price hits record low

Posted on January 26, 2016 by admin

Peruvian communities near Hudbay Minerals’ Constancia Mine on Monday began a 72-hour strike protesting the company’s refusal to negotiate over a host of economic, social and environmental issues.

The action comes on the same day that Hudbay’s stock closed at a record low $1.65 a share on the New York Stock Exchange.

Residents of communities in the district of Velille in the province of Chumbivilcas called the strike after Hudbay refused repeated requests for meetings, according to a press release issued by MiningWatch Canada. The strike comes 14 months after residents in nearby Uchucarco staged a protest march at Hudbay’s Constancia mine site. Protesters later seized and occupied the Constancia open pit site in Nov. 2014.

Velille Mayor, Sergio Valencia Salcedo, and the President of the Velille Defence Front, Guider Puma, have indicated that invitations and letters they sent to Hudbay and the government requesting dialogue have not received a response, the MiningWatch press release states. Continue reading →

Posted in Hudbay | 3 Comments

Hudbay expects to make key investment decision on Rosemont by midsummer

Posted on January 15, 2016 by admin

Hudbay Minerals is expected to make a crucial decision on the future of its Rosemont copper prospect by mid-summer when the Toronto-based miner completes an ongoing “definitive” feasibility study.

Hudbay says it will spend $30 million completing the study that will provide the foundation for its decision on future investments in the massive open pit copper project that would be constructed in the Santa Rita Mountains on the Coronado National Forest southeast of Tucson.

“Arizona spending on the Rosemont project reflects estimated spending to the completion of an updated definitive feasibility study by mid-2016, at which point additional spending on the project will be evaluated based on the status of permitting, project economics and the metals price environment,” Hudbay stated in a news release posted Thursday on its website.

Hudbay is facing daunting challenges on permitting and metals prices while other project economics may be more favorable. Continue reading →

Posted in Hudbay, Investors | 2 Comments

Media Release: Documentary on Hudbay Minerals and Rosemont Mine released online

Posted on January 13, 2016 by admin

“Flin Flon Flim Flam” takes an unflinching look into the operations of one of Canada’s oldest miners

InvestigativeMEDIA’s documentary “Flin Flon Flim Flam” on the worldwide operations of Toronto-based Hudbay Minerals Inc. and its plans to construct the Rosemont Copper Mine on the Coronado National Forest southeast of Tucson, AZ, is now available online.

Produced by Arizona-based investigative reporter John Dougherty, the film premiered Oct. 18 at the Loft Cinema in Tucson and was broadcast on Dec. 13 on KGUN-9.

Mr. Dougherty traveled to northern Manitoba to report on Hudbay’s historic operations, to the Guatemala highlands where Mayan peasants allege they are the victims of atrocities at the hands of Hudbay, and to the Peruvian Andes where Hudbay has clashed with the local community over the company’s largest operation, the Constancia Mine.

Continue reading →

Posted in Hudbay, Human Rights | 5 Comments

Hudbay’s closure of popular off-road trails near Rosemont project angers recreational users

Posted on December 17, 2015 by admin

Hudbay Minerals’ decision to close access to forest roads in the Santa Rita Mountains is angering southern Arizona residents who have long used the area for recreational and hunting purposes.

The action to shut off access to popular off-road trails came just days before a human-caused wildfire broke out near one of the closed roads leading to the popular Gunsight Pass.

Hudbay owns the Rosemont Copper Co. which is seeking state and federal permits to build the Rosemont copper mine in the Santa Rita Mountains on the Coronado National Forest southeast of Tucson.

Hudbay closed dirt roads on private land leading to Gunsight and Lopez passes on a prominent ridgeline on the Santa Ritas’ northern end — areas that have long drawn four-wheelers and hunters. The winding, rutted, rocky road leading to Gunsight from Sahuarita was particularly popular, the Arizona Daily Star reports.

“I find it extremely disheartening the mining company would close off this trail to the public, and it’s a significant loss to our community,” Matt Marine, who owns the Experience AZ website that offers information on four-wheeling, hiking and mountain biking across Arizona, said in an interview with the Daily Star. Continue reading →

Posted in Hudbay, Recreation | 11 Comments