The MMD will now circulate the application to other government agencies for comment as part of technical review process
In addition, under existing legislation, RHR has 30 days, from official receipt of notification, to provide written public notice of the MMD’s determination. The Roca Honda property, which is situated on public lands managed by the US Forest Service and the State of New Mexico, is held by Strathmore and Sumitomo Corp of Japan under their jointly owned subsidiary Roca Honda.
Earlier this year, RHR announced that its Roca Honda mine permit application remained on schedule for submittal in the fall of 2009. On October 23, 2009, RHR submitted its five volume mine permit application to the MMD and the US Forest Service, on schedule and under budget.With receipt of the recent notification from the MMD regarding the mine permit application, the three important submissions: the Water Discharge Permit application, the Sampling and Analysis Plan and the Mine Permit application have all been deemed administratively complete. These determinations mark the beginning the overall decision-making process for obtaining the regulatory approvals for the development of the Roca Honda Project.
The technical and public review process will provide the mechanism by which to provide additional technical information as may be requested by the MMD. An environmental impact analysis will be performed by the MMD and the U.S. Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on the project.
Juan Velasquez, Strathmore’s vice-president of Government, Regulatory, and Environmental Affairs, commented: “This is an exciting time for the Roca Honda project. With the support of Sumitomo, the RHR team has worked very hard over the last three years to advance this project, and we take great pride in the accomplishments made on the Roca Honda project to date. We are confident that working closely with the public, the State of New Mexico, and the United States Forest Service, will ultimately lead to the approvals that will allow us to develop a modern, safe, and environmentally sound project.”
David Miller, Strathmore’s chief executive officer summarized: “Our New Mexico permitting team, led by John DeJoia and Juan Velasquez, has completed the Roca Honda permit application as originally planned. This milestone could not have been achieved without their expertise and dedication. The Joint Venture remains committed to continuing the work necessary to revitalize the Grants Uranium District and is one-step closer to becoming a uranium producer in the United States.”
