FAQ’s Regarding In-Situ Copper Recovery (“ISCR”)
The Preliminary Economic Assessment (“PEA”) completed on the Van Dyke copper deposit contemplates using the ISCR method to dissolve and recover copper from bedrock; a process that is currently being employed on two similar copper projects in Arizona and used extensively for several types of mineral deposits in the United States and around the world over the past several decades.
The PEA concluded that the Van Dyke project is a potential mid-tier copper project and recommended advancing the project to the preliminary feasibility stage. The recommended program includes additional drilling to; expand the resource, upgrade resource categories and a pilot leach test to demonstrate that the ISCR process can be operated safely and in compliance with environmental legislation. Completion of the pilot leach test requires permits from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).
Q. What are the benefits for Miami and Area?
Significant economic benefit would accrue to Miami, the greater Miami area and State of Arizona in terms of employment, taxation and general increase in the overall level of business activity. The preliminary risk/benefit analysis completed as part of the PEA supports the proposed plan for the Van Dyke copper project. The project is in its early stages but should the project proceed to production a significant number of safe, stable, high paying, skilled and semi-skilled jobs would be generated.
Q. What types of jobs would the Van Dyke Project create?
The PEA projects that about 135 direct jobs and about 400 indirect jobs would be created. Positions created would include mill operators, welders, electricians, shift supervisors, maintenance personnel, security guards, accountants, administrative assistants, safety coordinators and contractors. Copper Fox’s local hire policy will emphasize the recruitment of employees from Miami, Globe, Superior and other areas of Arizona for these positions.
Q. Can people comment on this project?
Yes, Copper Fox has implemented an ongoing community outreach program covering a 40 mile radius and people are encouraged to attend various scheduled meetings for the Van Dyke project. The project will need to obtain its main permits from the ADEQ and USEPA to demonstrate that the proposed pilot leach test program can be operated in a safe and environmentally friendly manner. As part of the engagement process related to the permitting process, these agencies also reach out to the local communities and provide opportunities for the public to question and comment on the proposed plan for the project put forth by Copper Fox. Both agencies have established public comment periods and encourage input from the public. While the Town Council is not required to make a decision on the Van Dyke project, Copper Fox encourages the Town of Miami and the general public to reach out for more information on the project and ask whatever questions they may have.
Q. What effect will this project have on property values in Miami?
If the project proceeds to the production stage this would be expected to have a positive economic effect for Miami-Globe and surrounding areas in the form of salaries, increased services, increased job opportunities and local and municipal taxes. The PEA proposes to access the deposit by driving a small decline to a minimum depth of 800 feet below surface. From this point, a narrow drift would be extended through the Gila conglomerate, above the mineralized zone from which small ‘well bays’ would be excavated to be used to establish the injection and recovery wells. This environmentally friendly approach concentrates most of the operation underground, eliminating surface well fields, minimizing surface impact, disturbance to ground water, people and land around the project. On completion of operations, the surface and underground portions of the operation would be reclaimed and restored for redevelopment as commercial or residential usage or recreational activities. During operations, by putting a considerable portion of the operations underground, the site will look very much the same as it does today with minimal impact on traffic and noise.
Q. Will this project put acid into Miami drinking water?
The source of the drinking water for Miami-Globe is supplied from another valley located approximately 6 miles east of the Van Dyke project. The ISCR process proposes to inject a weak acidic solution (5 gram of acid/1,000 grams of water) into the deposit to dissolve the copper. The objective of the proposed pilot scale in-situ leach test is to demonstrate to the regulatory authorities, the public and stakeholders that the fluid injected into the deposit can be contained within a defined area and fully recovered. It would be expected that any permits issued for the project would contain several conditions related to the operation of the site that would have to be maintained to meet the permit conditions. The ISCR recovery operations as planned occurs from 800 to 1,700 feet below surface in the Pinal Schist below the Gila Conglomerate from which no drinking water supplies for the Miami-Globe area are withdrawn. The Gila Conglomerate is a calcareous unit and would be expected to act as a natural filtration system and could neutralize fluids from the ISCR operation. A unique feature of the Van Dyke deposit it that a ‘leach cap’ occurs above the mineralized zone which is expected to act as a barrier to fluid flow from the ISCR operation upward into the Gila Conglomerate.
The weak acid solution travels along the natural pre-existing cracks and fractures in the bedrock to dissolve copper. As this solution passes through the deposit, more solution is pumped out of the deposit than injected into the deposit to create a hydraulic system to capture all the injected fluid. After production ceases the deposit is rinsed with water over a defined period of time to recover any remaining injected solutions, restore the water quality to pre-production levels and compliance with permit requirements to ensure that the company complies with all requirements to protect drinking water, local water supplies, public health, and the environment. Monitoring wells would be installed around the deposit to monitor solution movement and water quality during and post production.
As indicated above, the water used for the ISCR process, and the source of the local drinking water are from different locations.
Q. Can in-situ recovery contaminate the groundwater?
Copper Fox would be required by both federal and state law to protect groundwater and prove that the ISCR operation can contain the injected fluid and be completed in a safe and environmentally friendly manner. The ISCR method has been used on two separate occasions to recover copper from the Van Dyke project over the past 40 years. The ISCR method is currently being used to extract soluble minerals from two copper deposits in Arizona and at other mineral deposits in the United States and around the world. The geological characteristics, location and development approach suggests that the injected fluids can be contained within the deposit and recovered during the normal course of operations. In addition, the leach cap sitting on top of the mineralized zone is expected to act as a barrier to fluid flow from the ISCR operation upward into the Gila Conglomerate. The use of monitoring wells, and daily operations would act as an early warning if fluids were leaking outside the deposit allowing for immediate response to remedy the matter.
Q. Will this project produce waste water?
The water that would be used in the proposed ISCR operation could come from a layer of surface alluvium located above the Gila Conglomerate that is not a source of drinking water or agricultural irrigation. Based on other similar studies, ISCR is reported to use significantly less water than what would be used by most types of farming, commercial or residential activities over a similar sized area. The water-based solution used in the ISCR process is extracted, processed, and re-circulated into the deposit creating a closed cycle. It is expected that the operation would generate excess water that would be stored in lined retention ponds. Evaporation and treating the solution in the retention ponds to meet or surpass environmental guidelines prior to being released to the surface are the primary methods used to deal with wastewater.
Q. Does the Company plan to do “fracking” on the Van Dyke deposit?
One of the objectives of the pilot leach test is to determine if rock stimulation is required to efficiently extract the copper from the deposit. The copper mineralization in the Van Dyke copper deposit occurs along an extensive system of interconnected pre-existing, naturally occurring cracks and fractures that existed prior to the formation of the copper mineralization.
Preliminary review of the historical data indicates that there is a strong possibility that rock stimulation of the deposit would not be required. Copper Fox would take all steps to control this process by restricting these measures to a maximum distance of between 10 and 30 meters around each hole. Completion of the pilot leach test would provide a significant amount of data related to the geotechnical and hydrogeological characteristics of the deposit from which improvement to the well field design and operations could be developed.
If the results of the pilot leach test demonstrates that rock stimulation is not required this would be expected to have a significant positive impact on the overall operation of the project.
Q. Isn’t the land the project is on zoned for residential use – homes and families?
A portion of the Van Dyke copper deposit is located under the Town of Miami where the historical mining activities took place. Our approach is to focus on enhancing the safety, social and environmental aspects of the project while reducing the project footprint and noise levels associated with operations. The surface facilities and underground access portal, as currently planned, are located on vacant land currently owned by Copper Fox
On completion of operations all facilities and infrastructure will be removed and the land on which these facilities are located will be available for redevelopment. During and upon completion of operations it is expected that the land surface will look much the same as it does now.
Q. What if the company went out of business? How is the area reclaimed?
As with all resource projects, the Van Dyke project would be required to post a performance bond, the amount of which is determined by the State of Arizona, essentially an insurance policy that guarantees there will always be enough money to resolve any problem and safely close and reclaim the project. It is expected that when Van Dyke proceeds to the proposed pilot leach test the state and federal regulatory authorities responsible for monitoring the pilot leach test would require a performance bond from Copper Fox. If required, the regulatory authorities who represent the public, can use money from this bond for clean-up and closure if the company was unable to meet its responsibilities and obligations.
Q. What are the next permits required by the Van Dyke project? What does that mean?
The permitting for the pilot leach test recommended in the PEA is prescribed by the Federal US Code (USC) laws, the US Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS). The environmental permitting process is managed first by the ADEQ and second by the USEPA. Other federal and state agencies may also become involved. The main permits required for the pilot leach test are:
- Aquifer Protection Permit (APP) and Underground Protection Control program for leaching operations and surface impoundments (ADEQ), and
- Underground Injection Control Permit (UIC) for injection wells (USEPA)
The timeline for data collection, permitting application, consultation and receipt of the permits could take up to five years.
The ADEQ have both scientists and engineers that review the permit application process and conduct a thorough evaluation of this project to determine if this process can be done safely.
Q. Who regulates the issuance of the Underground Injection Control (UIC) permit to the project? What does that mean?
The environmental permitting process is managed first by ADEQ and by USEPA, other federal and state agencies may also become involved.
The UIC permit is one of two main permits required to commence the pilot leach test. The UIC permit regulates the construction and operation of the Van Dyke ISCR project.
Q. Will there be increased traffic or noise created by the project?
The Van Dyke project is located within an area that currently has active mining operations. The increases in traffic, if any, resulting from the project will be relatively modest and within normal traffic patterns currently seen. The recent Biological Evaluation indicated that increases in noise and vibration levels, potential effects of dust on wildlife and vegetation from construction activities would be temporary and in keeping with existing noise effects. Disturbance related to construction activities would result in some minor loss of vegetation that may provide limited wildlife habitat.
Q. Is this process used anywhere else?
Two similar copper projects in Arizona are currently in the development/early production stage employing the ISCR approach. The in-situ recovery of metals has been used in the Miami-Globe area, in the western United States and around the world for the past few decades. It is extensively used in certain portions of the resource sector. The ISCR process reduces impact to the environment, produces lower carbon intensity per pound of copper and reduces surface disturbance.
Q. Is it dangerous to haul sulfuric acid to the site?
Sulfuric acid has been used by both the mining and agriculture industries in Arizona over a number of decades and is currently transported safely by truck or rail. The acid used for the Van Dyke project will be sourced locally if possible and transported in trucks designed to transport acid. Precautions will be taken to ensure containment of the acid during off loading and while stored on site.