Rep. Adelita Grijalva (D-CD7) launched her congressional career with a direct challenge to multinational mining corporations, introducing legislation that would block Rio Tinto and BHP from seizing 2,400 acres of sacred Apache land in Arizona’s Tonto National Forest.
The “Save Oak Flat from Foreign Mining Act,” filed today as Grijalva’s first bill, aims to repeal a controversial 2014-2015 land swap tucked into a defense spending bill that would transfer the Oak Flat area to foreign-owned Resolution Copper for what would become one of North America’s largest copper mines.
The measure targets Section 3003 of the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act, which mandated the transfer of approximately 2,422 acres of Tonto National Forest in exchange for company-owned parcels elsewhere.
Decade-Long Battle Continues
The freshman Democrat from Tucson is reviving a decade-long fight begun ten years ago by her late father, former Rep. Raúl Grijalva, who spent years pushing to undo the Oak Flat giveaway. As ranking member and former chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, the elder Grijalva repeatedly sponsored hardrock mining reform bills demanding federal royalties on minerals extracted from public lands, stronger environmental standards, and greater tribal authority over mining decisions.
His legislative efforts included the Hardrock Mining Reform and Reclamation Act and Clean Energy Minerals Reform bills, which sought to end what he called a “giveaway” system that allows mining companies to extract valuable minerals from federal lands without paying royalties to taxpayers.
Both father and daughter have framed their mine-related legislation as efforts to protect tribal rights and environmental resources, and to secure better returns for taxpayers from mining on public lands.
Environmental and Cultural Stakes
Adelita Grijalva’s bill would permanently withdraw Oak Flat from mining entry and mineral leasing, specifically targeting block-cave mining operations that environmental groups warn would create a crater up to two miles wide and 1,000 feet deep while draining scarce regional water resources.
The mining technique would irreversibly damage the sacred site and surrounding wildlife habitat, according to conservation organizations backing the measure.
Oak Flat is an ancient sacred site for the San Carlos Apache and other tribes, and destroying it would violate Indigenous religious freedom and cultural rights. Supporters describe the original land swap as a “backroom” deal that handed federal resources to overseas corporations without proper consultation with affected tribes or adequate environmental review.
Political Battle Lines
Previous versions of Oak Flat protection bills—including H.R. 1351 in the 118th Congress—have drawn strong Democratic and tribal support but stalled amid Republican opposition, citing economic concerns and national security arguments about critical mineral supplies.
As the measure seeks co-sponsors, it faces an uphill battle in a closely divided Congress where mining reform legislation has historically followed strict party lines.
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