Environmental cleanup begins at abandoned mines in Mansfield Canyon

TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) - An environmental cleanup will begin this week at three abandoned mines located within Mansfield Canyon near Patagonia, AZ, on the Nogales Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest.

Past mining activities left over 54,000 cubic yards of waste rock material and several shafts along Mansfield Canyon. On Wednesday, the USDA Forest Service is performing an environmental cleanup to reduce potential migration of waste rock materials containing lead and arsenic to the surrounding environment via surface runoff, erosion, and wind dispersion.

MINE SHAFT CLEAN UP 🚜🚜🚜 The US Department of Agriculture is cleaning up the mess left behind after decades of mining ⛏ Michael Colaianni has the details and what you need to know #environmentalcleanup #kold #coronadonationalforest
Posted by KOLD News 13 on Wednesday, December 5, 2018

The environmental cleanup will require heavy construction equipment during daylight hours. Access to a portion of Temporal Canyon and all of Mansfield Canyon will be closed to the public from now to March 2019. A Road Closure Order is being issued by the Coronado National Forest Supervisor.

Following the completion of the cleanup in March, the area will be revegetated with locally-sourced, native grasses, shrubs, cactus, and succulents through a partnership with Borderlands Restoration Network, a local non-profit organization.