Kennecott Utah Copper: Cornerstone: the future of Kennecott Utah Copper

Cornerstone: the future of Kennecott Utah Copper

The future of Kennecott

Over the 107-year life of Bingham Canyon Mine operations, Kennecott has invested billions of dollars to increase production and modernize our facilities. By doing this, we have provided the nation with needed metals; state and local governments with needed tax revenue; individuals and families with jobs and income; and scores of organizations with contributions that make our community a better place to live.

It’s now time to make another major investment in the future of Kennecott Utah Copper. After a long period of rigorous research and planning, we are pleased to announce the Cornerstone Project. Cornerstone is a plan for extending the life of the Bingham Canyon Mine and its operations to 2028 and beyond. This plan calls for pushing back the south wall of the mine to access additional ore resources to keep the mine operating productively, safely and efficiently.

Cornerstone is vital to Kennecott’s continued economic contribution. According to a 2009 University of Utah Bureau of Economic and Business Research study, Kennecott provided 2,400 local jobs, an additional 14,800 indirect jobs and nearly $1 billion in salaries, local taxes and purchases.

Cornerstone is clearly the key to continuing that economic contribution.

But we also know that Cornerstone presents some environmental challenges. Cornerstone will require us to update a number of existing air, water and land permits in order to move and crush more rock and store more tailings to maintain long-term copper production.

As you know, Kennecott is a heavily-regulated company. We will continue to work with various state and federal agencies to seek approvals to help keep our operations active for decades to come.

Mining provides the metals that are essential to the modern comforts of daily life, but we also recognize that mining disturbs the land. That’s why we take our responsibility very seriously to find ways to mitigate our impacts. We’re committed to reducing these environmental impacts as much as possible. We’re also dedicated to being transparent in our interactions with government agencies, the community and you. We welcome inquiry and discussion about how we will address environmental impacts and about how our proposal will continue benefiting our community. As we have been for more than a century, we will remain deeply committed to the people of the Salt Lake Valley and Utah for decades to come.