Published: May 4, 2026 |

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Save the Scenic Santa Ritas filed a lawsuit in Pima County Superior Court on Thursday seeking to rescind Toronto-based Hudbay Minerals’ purchase of 160 acres of State Trust Land to be used as a waste dump for its proposed Copper World Mine.

The environmental group alleges the Arizona State Land Department illegally changed the auction location without providing required public notice. Hudbay was the only bidder at the April 29 auction that lasted about three minutes.

Hudbay’s initial bid of $993,000, which was equal to the state-approved appraisal, was accepted as the highest and best offer.

“The state failed to hold the auction in the location the department advertised in two newspapers for ten weeks. This is not a complicated matter. We are hopeful a judge will rule the land department violated state law and the Constitution when it moved the location without legal notice and void the land sale,” said Save the Scenic Santa Ritas Executive Director John Dougherty.

The land is near Corona de Tucson and has drawn strong opposition from neighbors and environmental groups. Dozens showed up to protest outside the Arizona State Building in Downtown Tucson on the morning of the auction.

Hudbay said the auction was a crucial step to move the project forward. In a statement to News 4 Tucson, the company said the results allow the State Land Department to successfully fulfill its fiduciary duty by turning a landlocked, 160-acre parcel into a vital revenue stream for Arizona’s public schools.

The company said acquiring the parcel allows it to immediately implement a community mitigation plan that increases the buffer between its operations and the southern edge of Corona de Tucson by about one mile. Hudbay said it remains committed to mitigation and building an environmentally sustainable mine as it continues delivering high-quality jobs and long-term tax revenue to Southern Arizona.

The Tucson City Council is expected to vote on a formal resolution opposing the Copper World project at its next meeting slated for Tuesday, May 5.

Source: KVOA

Hudbay is a copper-focused mining company with three long-life operations and a world-class pipeline of copper growth projects in tier-one mining-friendly jurisdictions of Canada, Peru, and the United States. Hudbay’s operating portfolio includes the Constancia mine in Cusco (Peru), the Snow Lake operations in Manitoba (Canada) and, upon completion of the arrangement with Copper Mountain Mining Corp., the Copper Mountain mine in British Columbia (Canada). Copper is the primary metal produced by the company, which is complemented by meaningful gold production. Hudbay’s growth pipeline includes the Copper World project in Arizona, the Mason project in Nevada (United States), the Llaguen project in La Libertad (Peru), and several expansion and exploration opportunities near its existing operations.

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