Eight groups, most of them in Tucson, have accused the federal government of failing to consider the cumulative impact of the project, particularly on endangered species in the region.

The lawsuit was filed on Tuesday by the Patagonia Regional Resources Alliance, the Center for Biodiversity, the Tucson Audubon Society, Save the Scenic Santa Ritas, Friends of the Santa Cruz River, Friends of Sonoita Creek, Earthworks, filed in U.S. District Court in Tucson. and the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition.

The Patagonian Mountains are a breeding ground for the endangered Mexican Barred Owl and Yellow-billed Cuckoo, and may be used by the elusive jaguars and ocelots heading north from Mexico.

The mountains, about 105 miles southeast of Tucson, are home to several mines, including the Sunnyside Copper Project by Canada-based Barksdale Resources and the adjacent Flax Canyon exploration by Australia-based South32. ing.

The two projects could create up to 37 test pits thousands of feet deep, according to the complaint. According to the lawsuit, the work will require machines to run day and night for several years, driving away wildlife and threatening to pollute the water supply of a nearby Patagonian town.

“The Patagonian Mountains, rich in wild biodiversity, should not be allowed to be recklessly prospected,” Raiken Jordahl, a Southwest conservationist at the Center for Biodiversity, said in a statement. “Endangered species such as jaguars, ocelots and Mexican mackerel owls already face threats such as border walls, climate change and habitat loss. We definitely want to avoid any new copper mines that devastate the industry.”

“The Patagonian Mountains and Sonoita Creek watershed are the lifeblood of our beautiful region,” added Carolyn Shaffer, president of the Patagonia Area Resources Alliance. “Our priority must be to protect this critical habitat, a source of drinking water, clean air, and biological wealth that fuels the region’s nature-based recovery economy. ”

The Forest Service approved a seven-year exploratory well program for Barksdale on June 16, less than three weeks after giving approval to begin drilling at the Flax Canyon site about a mile away.

Flax Canyon is part of South32’s much larger Hermosa project. The project is a proposed $1.7 billion zinc-manganese mine currently undergoing federal review as part of an Obama-era program aimed at streamlining the permitting process for critical infrastructure.

Both manganese and zinc have been designated as important minerals by the U.S. Geological Survey, and President Joe Biden has called for increased domestic manganese mining and processing under the Defense Production Act to strengthen the supply chain for high-capacity batteries. Acknowledged.

South32 is the world’s largest producer of this mineral, but no significant deposits have been mined in the United States since the 1970s.

Company officials expect to make a final decision later this year on whether to proceed with underground mining on privately owned land owned by the company at the Hermosa site. If developed as planned, the project will be the largest investment in Santa Cruz County history.

The Hermosa site is just northwest of the proposed San Antonio project. The project is another Barksdale-owned project investigating suspected copper deposits on approximately 6,300 acres of land in the Patagonian Mountains.

All recent exploration projects have been in historic mining areas dating back to the 1800s, but decades have seen no significant activity.

The Forest Service manages much of the Patagonian Mountains as part of the Coronado National Forest. The agency and Coronado National Forest Commissioner Kerwin Dewberry are both named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

Forest Service spokeswoman Starr Farrell said the Forest Service does not comment on the lawsuit.

Environmental groups are seeking an immediate injunction blocking the Forest Service’s approval and halting drilling operations pending a more thorough review.

Lawyers for the Western Mining Action Project and San Francisco-based environmental law firm Earthjustice are representing all eight groups in the lawsuit.

“These projects threaten to push endangered species out and disrupt wildlife movement between Mexico and the American Southwest,” said Scott Stern, deputy attorney for EarthJustice’s biodiversity defense program. rice field. “We need to get this issue back to square one so the government can properly consider the potential damage to land, water and species in southeastern Arizona.”