CORONA DE TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — A group of community members in Corona de Tucson is teaming up with the University of Arizona to track air quality in anticipation of a major mining operation set to begin nearby.
Purple Air monitors have been installed across the area, including on the roof of Copper Ridge Elementary School, as part of a citizen science effort aimed at collecting baseline air quality data. These monitors measure pollutants like PM 2.5, a fine particulate matter that can cause respiratory problems.
The initiative is supported by the University of Arizona’s Southwest Environmental Health Center, which operates a lending library providing free access to its air sensors.
The data collected is made publicly available through the Purple Air online dashboard.
Cathy McGrath, a long-time resident, says the effort is about protecting the rural peace and clean air the community values.
“We don’t have a lot of traffic, it’s peace and quiet,” she said. “We have animals walking through our yards... We’d like to keep it that way.”
McGrath and others are especially concerned about Hudbay’s Copper World Mine, a major copper project slated to begin operations in the nearby Santa Rita Mountains in 2026.
One of the mine’s proposed tailings dumps, which stores mining waste, would be just over a mile from a local elementary school and a nearby housing subdivision.
“We have some very high winds out here, the Vail gales,” McGrath explained. “So we really want to try and get some benchmark readings... where the truck traffic is gonna be when they start pumping those 70 trucks in and out.”
McGrath and other community members, such as Julie Buell, will use these benchmark readings to compare with the air quality following the start of operations at Copper World.
If changes occur, the group will share this data with the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), which oversees the mine.
“We want to get a baseline so that we can show what it should be and what it will,” Buell said. “That way, we can keep up on it and try to keep ADEQ accountable.”
Sofia Forier-Montes, Assistant Director of the Southwest Environmental Health Center, says the program gives communities tools to advocate for their health and environment.
“There are communities that know something is happening... but without the data, without science, it’s difficult to advocate for yourself,” she said. “So we give them the tools to do that.”
Hudbay, the company behind the Copper World project, responded to concerns with the following statement:
We share the community’s concern in protecting air quality. Copper World will operate under a robust air quality program overseen by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, which requires continuous monitoring, regular reporting, and strict compliance with state and federal standards. In addition, Hudbay is working with state and local agencies to solve the problem of dust on S. Santa Rita Rd. As part of this effort, we’ve applied an eco-safe dust suppressant from Arizona-based Soilworks that has delivered favorable results. Hudbay is committed to environmental stewardship and will continue to implement responsible and sustainable practices throughout the Copper World project.
To learn more about the U of A air monitor lending program, visit the Southwest Environmental Health Center website.
Those interested in installing an air sensor, or have general questions or concerns about environmental issues in their community, can complete a form on the organization’s website.
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