PATAGONIA, Ariz. (AP) - The U.S. Forest Service is permanently sealing the entrance to a long-closed southern Arizona mine for public safety and to halt drainage of acid from the mine's horizontal opening.
Coronado National Forest officials said work began July 8 to seal the entrance to the Lead Queen Mine located near Patagonia and 60 miles (97 kilometers) southeast of Tucson.
The Forest Service said remediation work was done in 2016 but that acid has continued to drain from the mine due to precipitation and storm runoff.
The mine was first operated for about five years beginning in 1897 and a different company opened it up again in 1910.
