The Marana Town Council recently dropped its opposition to the Rosemont Copper mine south of Tucson, saying it had acted in haste without enough information previously. Mayor Ed Honea said the council might decide to formally endorse the project in the future. [right, view of Santa Rita towards proposed mine site. Credit, Rosemont Copper]
Meanwhile, given that the Democrats loss of the U.S. House probably means that Rep. Raul Grijalva's proposed legislation to ban mining (and inexplicably geothermal energy as well) on federal lands in Pima and Santa Cruz counties is not going anywhere when Congress reconvenes. Both Mr. Grijalva and Rep. Gabby Giffords, opponents of the Rosemont mine, were re-elected, defeating opponents who favored it.
Rosemont released a poll last month that showed strong public support for the mine among residents of Pima, Santa Cruz, and Cochise counties, that increased when the economic benefits of the mine were presented.