Saving Oak Flat- does anyone care? -C&M throwdown-
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Saving climbing access in Oak Flat & Queen Creek has been an ongoing process. I'm starting this thread for the benefit of ALL Climbers in a non-partisan way. Being armed with facts & communicating directly to our Congressional Representatives about our concerns is imo the best way at this time to insure our voices will be heard. |
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I agree kirra - the best way to be heard is by individually writing to Congress. I've inserted a link below to the list of senators to focus on. |
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BlueFrog wrote:To be clear, the 2013 version of the Southeast AZ Land Exchange and Conservation Act (a carefully-worded title meant to dupe the uninitiated) is the same as the 2011-2012 version.It's not quite the same; a change was made in Section 9 with respect to The Town of Superior's obligations, etc. Perhaps just a minor detail though it would appear that the bill was changed due to the rescission of the Town Council's support of the Federal Land Exchange Legislation as Kirra pointed out. HR 687, Oak Flat Privatization Bill of 2013 Fred |
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Thanks for the correction Fred. It's surprising that it's nearly the same bill because I expected Kirkpatrick to introduce some changes that would make it more acceptable to her peers. But she is partnering with Gosar so that explains it. |
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Fred AmRhein wrote: It's not quite the same; a change was made in Section 9 with respect to The Town of Superior's obligations, etc.Fred, unfortunately upon closer inspection it looks like even section 9 is verbatim to the "Southeast AZ Exchange and Conservation act of 2011". A text-to-text comparison reveals that both bills are exactly the same, minus the headings since the 2011 HR 1904 bill did pass the House (later rejected in the Senate) Still listed in section 9 (Superior's supposed "interests") are the 3 parcels of land that lie within Superior:
In fact, all of the land listed for exchange seems to be exactly the same as the previous bill. It's all sugar-coated here as "even exchanges" in this document from Resolution Copper Land Exchange Parcel Overview - from Resolution Copper Main take-away: there hasn't been ANY budge by Resolution Copper to negotiate, to win any more favor from the town of Superior or the communities that their business interest directly impacts, or to offer up studies that prove to the public that their brute-force block caving mining techniques wont leave the riparian landscape of Oak Flat / Apache Leap / Devils Canyon in ruin. Based on the verbiage of our lawmakers re-introducing this bill, this year's tactics are to tug at the heartstrings of everyone affected by economic hardship (read: everyone), inflating the hopes that RC will bring thousands of jobs, decades of steady economic recovery to Superior, and will "help to reduce our foreign dependency on copper". There are already quite a few discussions out there refuting every one of these claims. I agree with Kirra & BlueFrog that individual letter-writing to our elected officials is an effective means towards shedding light on the irreversible impacts of giving up this protected land to RC. Thanks for posting up those links! |
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Ben Watson wrote: Fred, unfortunately upon closer inspection it looks like even section 9 is verbatim to the "Southeast AZ Exchange and Conservation act of 2011".Ben, Looks like you are right; somehow I was comparing HR 687 to HR 1904 as introduced, not passed by the House. It looks like a minor change was made in Sec 9 as it moved along the process. Apologies; glad that others are reading the legislation too. Fred |
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Fred AmRhein wrote:It looks like a minor change was made in Sec 9 as it moved along the process.Ah, good catch, Fred. You're right about the change to the section wording as it moved through the house. Fred AmRhein wrote:glad that others are reading the legislation too.Second that. |
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Thanks for clearing up the wording. I agree that because this Exchange bill is the same as the last one that failed, that it's probably part of the long-term strategy that RC is banking on to eventually wear down us obstacles to "progress." |
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Fred thanks for posting H.Bill. I noticed a referenced link to Senate Bill on same page but link failed -see correction below. |
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HR 687 and S 339 are identical bills. |
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"Main take-away: there hasn't been ANY budge by Resolution Copper to negotiate, to win any more favor from the town of Superior or the communities that their business interest directly impacts, or to offer up studies that prove to the public that their brute-force block caving mining techniques wont leave the riparian landscape of Oak Flat / Apache Leap / Devils Canyon in ruin." |
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ClimbandMine is correct here. |
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Sarcasm Clickety Clackmon. |
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Curt Shannon wrote:HR 687 and S 339 are identical bills. CurtThanks Curt ! BlueFrog wrote:Senate Energy & Resources CommitteeDoes everyone have those letters ready? :) Here is the updated address info. for the Senate Resources Committee. I have included a local contact + DC. For additional local addresses please see email contact website link. I will post up some testimony & talking points next for those who want additional facts. Many thanks in advance to all!!! ~~~~~~~~U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources 2013 Contact list~~~~~~~~ Senator Ron Wyden (Chairman) - Oregon 221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C., 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5244 | Fax: (202) 228-2717 911 NE 11th Ave., Suite 630 - Portland, OR, 97232 Ph: (503) 326-7525 | Fax: (503) 326-7528 wyden.senate.gov/contact ~ ~ ~ ~ Democratic Members: ~ ~ ~ ~ Senator Tim Johnson - South Dakota 136 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5842 | Fax: (202) 228-5765 5015 S. Bur Oak Place, Sioux Falls, SD 57108 Ph: (605) 332-8896 | Fax: (605) 332-2824 johnson.senate.gov/public/i… -------------------------------------- Senator Mary L. Landrieu - Louisiana 703 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5824 | Fax: (202) 224-9735 U.S. Courthouse, 300 Fannin St., Room 2240 - Shreveport, LA 71101 Ph: (318) 676-3085 | Fax: (318) 676-3100 landrieu.senate.gov/?p=contact -------------------------------------- Senator Maria Cantwell - Washington 311 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-3441 | Fax: (202) 228-0514 915 2nd Ave., Suite 3206 - Seattle, WA 98174 Ph:(206) 220-6400 | Fax: (206) 220-6404 cantwell.senate.gov/public/… -------------------------------------- Senator Bernie Sanders - Vermont 332 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5141 | Fax: (202) 228-0776 1 Church St. 2nd Floor, Burlington, VT 05401 Ph: (802) 862-0697 | Fax: (802) 860-6370 Toll-free: (800) 339-9834 sanders.senate.gov/contact/… -------------------------------------- Senator Debbie Stabenow - Michigan 133 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-4822 | Fax: (202) 228-0325 243 West Congress, Suite 550 - Detroit, MI 48226 Ph: (313) 961-4330 | Fax: (313) 961-7566 stabenow.senate.gov/?p=contact -------------------------------------- Senator Mark Udall - Colorado 328 Hart Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5941 | Fax: (202) 224-6471 Colorado toll-free tel: 1- 877-7-MUDALL (877-768-3255) 999 18th Street, North Tower, Suite 1525 - Denver, CO 80202 Ph: (303) 650-7820 | Fax: (303) 293-0507 markudall.senate.gov/contac… -------------------------------------- Senator Al Franken - Minnesota 309 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5641 | Fax: (202) 224-0044 60 East Plato Blvd. Suite 220 - Saint Paul, MN 55107 Ph: (651) 221-1016 | Fax: (651) 221-1078 franken.senate.gov/?p=email_al -------------------------------------- Senator Joe Manchin - West Virginia 303 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington DC, 20510 Ph: (202) 224-3954 | Fax: (202) 228-0002 300 Virginia Street, East, Suite 2630 - Charleston, WV 25301 Ph: (304) 342-5855 | Fax: (304) 343-7144 Toll-Free tel: (855) 275-5737 (Residents with 304 or 681 area code only) manchin.senate.gov/public/i… -------------------------------------- Senator Christopher A. Coons - Delaware 127A Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5042 | Fax: (202) 228-3075 500 West Loockerman Street, Suite 450 - Dover, DE 19904 Ph: (302) 736-5601 | fax: (302) 736-5609 Toll-free tel: (877) 668-3368 coons.senate.gov/contact/ -------------------------------------- Senator Brian Schatz - Hawaii G11 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-3934 | Fax: (202) 224-6747 300 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 1-340, Honolulu, HI 96850 Ph: (808) 523-2061 | Fax: (808) 523-2065 senate.gov/pagelayout/gener… -------------------------------------- Senator Martin Heinrich - New Mexico B40D Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5521 | Fax: (202) 228-2841 625 Silver Avenue,S.W., Suite 130 - Albuquerque, NM 87102 Ph: (505) 346-6601 | Fax: (505) 346-6780 heinrich.senate.gov/contact… ~ ~ ~ ~ Republican Members: ~ ~ ~ ~ Senator Lisa Murkowski (Ranking Member) - Alaska 709 Hart Senate Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-6665 | Fax: (202) 224-5301 510 L Street, Suite 600 - Anchorage, AK 99501 Ph: (907) 271-3735 | Toll Free Fax: (877) 857-0322 Toll Free Ph: (877) 829-6030 murkowski.senate.gov/public… -------------------------------------- Senator John Barrasso Wyoming 307 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-6441 | Fax: (202) 224-1724 Toll-free Ph: (866) 235-9553 2120 Capitol Avenue Suite 2013 - Cheyenne, WY 82001 Ph: 307-772-2451 | Fax: 307-638-3512 barrasso.senate.gov/public/… -------------------------------------- Senator James E. Risch Idaho 483 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510-1205 Ph: 202-224-2752 | Fax: 202-224-2573 350 North 9th Street, Suite 302 - Boise, ID 83702 Ph: (208) 342-7985 | Fax: (208) 343-2458 risch.senate.gov/public/ind… -------------------------------------- Senator Mike Lee - Utah 316 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Ph: (202) 224-5444 | Fax: (202) 228-1168 Wallace F. Bennett Federal Building 125 South State, Suite 4225 - Salt Lake City, UT 84138 Ph: (801) 524-5933 | Fax: (801) 524-5730 lee.senate.gov/public/index… -------------------------------------- Senator Dean Heller - Nevada 361-A Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Tel: (202) 224-6244 | Fax: (202) 228-6753 Lloyd George Federal Building 333 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Suite 8203 - Las Vegas, NV 89101 Ph: (702) 388-6605 | Fax: (702) 388-6501 heller.senate.gov/public/in… -------------------------------------- Senator Jeff Flake - Arizona B85 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510-0305 Ph: (202) 224-4521 | Fax: (202) 228-0515 2200 East Camelback Road, Suite 120 - Phoenix, AZ 85016 Ph: (602) 840-1891 | Fax: (602) 840-0492 6840 Oracle Road, Suite 150 - Tucson, AZ 85704 Ph: (520) 575-8633 | Fax: (520) 797-3232 flake.senate.gov/contact.cfm -------------------------------------- Senator Tim Scott - South Carolina 167 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-6121 | Fax: (202) 228-5143 1301 Gervais Street, Suite 825 - Columbia, SC 29201 Ph: (803) 771-6112 | Fax: (803) 771-6455 scott.senate.gov/contact.cfm -------------------------------------- Senator Lamar Alexander Tennessee 455 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-4944 | Fax: (202) 228-3398 Joel E. Soloman Federal Building 900 Georgia Avenue, Suite 260 - Chattanooga, TN 37402 Ph: (423) 752-5337 | Fax: (423) 752-5342 alexander.senate.gov/public… -------------------------------------- Senator Rob Portman Ohio 338 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20510 Ph: (202) 224-3353 | Fax: (202) 224-9075 37 West Broad Street, Room 300 - Columbus, OH 43215 Ph: 614-469-6774 | Toll-Free: (800) 205-6446 420 Madison Avenue, Room 1210 - Toledo, OH 43604 Ph: (419) 259-3895 | Fax: (419) 259-3899 Contact Senator Portman -------------------------------------- Senator John Hoeven - North Dakota 120 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington DC, 20510 Ph: (202) 224-2551 | Fax: (202) 224-7999 US Federal Building 220 East Rosser Avenue, Room 312 - Bismarck, ND 58501 Ph: (701) 250-4618 | Fax: (701) 250-4484 hoeven.senate.gov/public/in… ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
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As mentioned, while this current Senate Bill is the same as the House Bill, there are SIGNIFICANT differences between S.409 (111th Session) and the *new* Senate Bill S.339 recently introduced in the 113th Session. |
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"The House Natural Resources Committees Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee will be holding a hearing on the Oak Flat land exchange (HR 687) on March 21st at 10:00 AM. We are scrambling to prepare for the hearing. There are lot's of things to do for folks in Washington, DC, here in Arizona and across the US. If you are willing to pitch in, send us a note! Stay tuned for more details." |
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"You need to know--Reps. Gosar & Kirkpatrick (in spite of the termination of the agreement between the Town of Superior and Resolution Copper Co.(2-21-13)--based on the Conflict of Interest conviction of Hank Gutierrez, and how little the agreement truly provided Superior), just this past Friday, have moved the Land Exchange Legislation (HB 687) into the House Subcommittee on Energy & Mineral Resources in DC, set for Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 10 am. |
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kirra wrote:"You need to know--Reps. Gosar & Kirkpatrick (in spite of the termination of the agreement between the Town of Superior and Resolution Copper Co.(2-21-13)--based on the Conflict of Interest conviction of Hank Gutierrez, and how little the agreement truly provided Superior), just this past Friday, have moved the Land Exchange Legislation (HB 687) into the House Subcommittee on Energy & Mineral Resources in DC, set for Thursday, March 21, 2013 at 10 am. By terminating this bogus agreement, the Superior Town Council has done the right thing, and are now looking out for the best interests of the entire community, environment and "Oak Flat", and not the few select people/businesses that received money from RCC. It would also appear that our AZ Congressional Delegation is only concerned in supporting these international corporate giants (Rio Tinto & BHP) by circumventing federal laws and mandates within the language of the bill. It's apparent that they're not looking into the best interests of Superior and the concerns of the current Town Council. This action is a disgrace to our entire nation and possibly illegal. Now is the time to "turn-up the heat", voice your opinion and spread the word on how bad this special-interest legislation (benefiting these foreign mining companies), really is! We'll keep you posted, but for more info and how you can help, go to azminingreform.org. Remember: "Si Se Puede"!!! - Thanks, Roy "Potts" Chavez reprinted- Facebook "Saving OAK FLAT Campground"Looks like the Town of Superior did send a message in voting out two sitting council members and electing 2 new ones. The financial condition of the town is a wreck and it seems they might be on the verge of having to shut down many services. But before they have to break that news, the easier thing to do is to attack RCC. If the real reason was Councilman Gutierrez's conflict of interest, then why didn't this happen months ago, last year, when the AG made his decision? Pretty suspicious. |
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Ben Beard wrote:..If the real reason was Councilman Gutierrez's conflict of interest, then why didn't this happen months ago, last year, when the AG made his decision?...it did -sometimes it takes awhile to clean house Oct 3, 2012 Superior Town Councilman Hank Gutierrez forced to resign Nov 9, 2011 Superior Mayor Hing recalled |
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Possibly illegal? |
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ClimbandMine wrote:Possibly illegal? Please name the CFR in violation (as in 30 CFR 57.XXXX). I'll buy you a beer if you can name one.perhaps that offer & question should be directed to the fellow quoted from FB though I'll respond as I may be thirsty soon... CFR 30 57.XXX that you speak of regulates mining procedures and is not the correct area to look for ethics violations. A better place may be here: US Office of Govt Ethics -Conflicts of Interest - I believe that every State also has their own interpretation by Statutes (Colorado does): Links to States' Legislative Ethics & Lobbying Laws We should perhaps offer a case o'beer to the AG of AZ who had the 'tener cojones' to call out Resolution Copper Mining for bribing the public officials in Superior Town. I heard the local details & rejoiced. RCM has bribed the climbing community as well. You should be outraged if you have the cojones! cheers- -------------------------------------------- For those who missed the Iranian connection - Resolution Copper, Rio Tinto and Iran |