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ASARCO

From Alfawiki
ASARCO
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryMining, smelting, refining
Founded1888; 138 years ago (1888)
FounderHenry H. Rogers, William Rockefeller, Leonard Lewisohn
Headquarters
Tucson, Arizona
,
United States
Area served
United States
Key people
Daniel Tellechea (former president)
ProductsCopper (mining, smelting, refining)
OwnerGrupo México
ParentGrupo México
Websitewww.asarco.com

ASARCO (American Smelting and Refining Company) is a mining, smelting, and refining enterprise based in Tucson, Arizona, with a primary emphasis on copper production. Since 1999, it has operated as a subsidiary of Grupo México.

The company's three principal open-pit mining operations—Mission, Silver Bell, and Ray—are situated in Arizona and collectively yield roughly of copper each year. ASARCO carries out solvent extraction and electrowinning processes at the Ray and Silver Bell mines located in Pima and Pinal Counties, Arizona. Additionally, it runs a smelting facility in Hayden, Arizona. The smelter in El Paso, Texas ceased operations in 1999 and was demolished in 2013; before its closure, it produced approximately of anode copper annually. Refining activities at the mining sites along with the copper refinery in Amarillo, Texas contribute about of refined copper output per annum.

The majority of ASARCO’s employees are union members represented by the United Steelworkers.

ASARCO oversees 20 Superfund sites throughout the United States and has been involved in extensive legal proceedings related to environmental contamination. Following its emergence from bankruptcy in 2008, the company agreed to a $1.79 billion settlement with the government to finance cleanup work at 26 locations under the supervision of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

History

Established in 1888 by notable figures such as Henry H. Rogers, William Rockefeller, and Leonard Lewisohn, ASARCO became a significant force within the mining and refining sectors. Between 1901 and 1959, it was listed on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Control passed to the Guggenheim family in 1901, who expanded ASARCO’s operations by acquiring assets including the Tacoma smelter from Bunker Hill Mining Company. By the middle of the twentieth century, ASARCO dominated U.S. lead production with a near-monopoly on smelting activities.

A tragic incident occurred on January 11, 1916, when sixteen ASARCO workers lost their lives near Santa Isabel, Chihuahua; this event was instrumental in prompting the U.S. military's Mexican Expedition.

With its headquarters established in Tucson, ASARCO developed its core business around copper extraction through open-pit mining at its Arizona locations while also operating silver mines in Idaho. The company adopted the name ASARCO Incorporated in 1975. In 1999, Grupo México acquired ASARCO; Grupo México had originally been ASARCO’s Mexican subsidiary holding a 49% interest since 1965.

On August 9, 2005, led by then-president Daniel Tellechea, ASARCO sought Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Corpus Christi, Texas.

By 2019, ASARCO’s U.S.-based activities concentrated on its Arizona mining and smelting complex along with the copper refining facility in Amarillo.

Pollution and environmental issues

ASARCO has been identified by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as responsible for contamination at twenty Superfund sites across the United States. Notable locations include:

  1. The former American Smelting and Refining Co. site in Omaha, Nebraska—where dismantling and remediation have been completed and the area repurposed.
  2. Interstate Lead Company (ILCO) facility located in Leeds, Alabama.
  3. The Argo and Grant Smelter sites situated in Denver, Colorado.
  4. The Smeltertown copper plant in El Paso County, Texas—closed following illegal hazardous waste disposal practices.
  5. California Gulch mine and surrounding river systems near Leadville, Colorado.
  6. Summitville Consolidated Mining Corp., now bankrupt, located in Del Norte, Colorado.
  7. The ASARCO Globe Plant adjacent to the South Platte River within Denver and Adams County, Colorado.
  8. Bunker Hill Mining and Metallurgical site within Idaho’s Coeur d'Alene River Basin.
  9. Kin-Buc Landfill situated in New Jersey.
  10. Lead and zinc operations at Tar Creek in Oklahoma.
  11. Smelter regions around Commencement Bay including Tacoma and Ruston, Washington.
  12. Everett Smelter site located in Everett, Washington.
  13. Former lead smelter property at Murray, Utah—now reclaimed and hosting the Intermountain Medical Center.

These contaminated sites represent considerable environmental liabilities that have shaped ASARCO’s operational history and regulatory responsibilities.

Litigation history

In 1983, following a lawsuit filed by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment against ASARCO for environmental harm, the EPA designated the ASARCO Globe Plant as a Superfund site on its National Priorities List, holding ASARCO accountable for the remediation expenses.

The Omaha facility operated by ASARCO was identified in 1972 as releasing elevated lead concentrations. After being penalized with a $3.6 million fine in 1996 for discharging pollutants into the Missouri River, ASARCO ceased operations at this plant in 1997. The area experienced significant cleanup efforts and was transformed into a 23-acre public park. Additionally, East Omaha, spanning more than 8,000 acres, was declared a Superfund site, with cleanup completed on 290 acres by 2003.

In 1991, the Coeur d'Alene Tribe initiated legal action against Hecla Mining, ASARCO, and others under CERCLA due to contamination stemming from the Bunker Hill Mine and Smelting Complex Superfund site, which impacted local water sources and land. The United States government joined this lawsuit in 1996. Upon emerging from bankruptcy protection, ASARCO agreed in 2008 to contribute $452 million toward cleanup as part of an overall settlement nearing $2 billion that addressed contamination at 26 different locations.

Tests conducted by the EPA in 2007 near ASARCO's Hayden Smelter in Arizona detected pollutant levels—such as arsenic, lead, and copper—that exceeded health-based standards. The EPA proposed adding the Hayden site to the Superfund list to facilitate funding for remediation. However, with support from Governor Janet Napolitano, ASARCO negotiated alternative cleanup measures instead of formal listing. After exiting Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008, ASARCO consented to a $1.79 billion settlement with federal authorities to address pollution across as many as 80 sites nationwide. This agreement included notorious facilities like the El Paso smelting plant, where cleanup activities began in 2010.

Documentary

ASARCO's Tar Creek Superfund site was highlighted in Matt Myers' 2009 documentary Tar Creek. This location was once regarded by the EPA as its most severe environmental challenge among over 1,200 contaminated sites.

See also

External links

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