The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to intervene on behalf of an Arizona tribe's request to stop a large copper mining project on land they hold sacred, as was reported by E&E News yesterday. This land, known as Oak Flat or Chi’chil Biłdagoteel, is part of the Tonto National Forest, a site where the San Carlos Apache Tribe conducts ceremonies, prays, and harvests acorns. The justices left in place decisions from lower courts that favor the land transfer to Resolution Copper, which seeks to exploit what they call the world's second-largest known copper deposit; this stance reinforces the Trump administration's intention to complete the transfer.
Justice Neil Gorsuch, alongside Justice Clarence Thomas, voiced their dissent, with Gorsuch labeling the Court's refusal as a "grave mistake." He expressed concern that the Court should have at least heard the tribe's arguments before sanctioning the destruction of their sacred site, also stating, "The decision below is highly doubtful as a matter of law, it takes a view of the law at odds with those expressed by other federal courts of appeals, and it is vitally important," according to E&E News. Conversely, Resolution Copper argues that this issue is about the government's right to use national land for greater interests, stating that the campground will remain open for years to come.
As noted by FOX 10 Phoenix, the Apache Stronghold, a group fighting for the San Carlos Apache Tribe, insisted the land transfer would violate members' religious rights under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. They forewarned that the Resolution Copper mine would irreparably alter the landscape, turning the region into a vast crater, but despite their efforts, the Supreme Court has now given the green light to proceed with the land exchange implicated in the 2014 National Defense Authorization Act, initiated by the late Sen. John McCain.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals previously ruled in favor of allowing the land transfer to Resolution Copper, a joint venture between Rio Tinto and BHP, with a 6–5 decision that supported a lower court's denial of the Apache Stronghold's plea for an injunction against the land transfer. This mining endeavor has, thus far, consistently found legal validation, mirroring support initially established by Senator McCain's endorsement of the deal encapsulating Oak Flat in the defense act, as mentioned by FOX 10 Phoenix.
