What enviros say when they donate know we’re listening
BUSINESS INK

By Roger Yohem, Inside Tucson Business
Published on Friday, July 9th, 2010
There’s a really simple explanation for Tucson’s anti-business environment. Government leaders and city staff members — Pima County officials, too — are in lockstep with the NIMBYs, no-growthers and environmentalists.

An example was an enviro-rally in May put on by the Save the Scenic Santa Ritas group. There were almost enough elected officials there to make it a quorum. In fact, Pima County Supervisors Ray Carroll and Richard Elias presided over the awards presentations.

As a special interest group, enviros put Mother Earth before people. That point hit home after listening to a tape of the event, which was more like a “roast” of the proposed Rosemont Copper mine. It’s stunning to hear what enviros say when they think there are no “outsiders” around.

Upset with the proposed mine, speakers pushed an agenda that includes a boycott of businesses and events that accept advertising, sponsorships or financial support from Rosemont Copper.

That includes the University of Arizona’s public television and radio outlets, the Meet Me at Maynards weekly walk and run and the El Tour de Tucson bicycle event in November.

For your consideration, here are some excerpts taken from the tape of the event:

“Rosemont Copper has been trying to buy events by the community by sponsorship and endorsing different events. Things like the 24-hour mountain bike race in Pinal County, Meet Me at Maynards, El Tour de Tucson. So one of the things we have decided to do, in addition to boycotting these events, is to hit them in the pocketbooks. We need to boycott those events but also support the people and events that are refusing to take Rosemont money,” said Carolyn Campbell of the  Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection.

Points to ponder: The Mayor and Council are so obsessed with Maynards Market they gave them free rent in the city-owned Historic Depot until May 2011. The city is desperate for Maynards to be a downtown success story. Yet, city council staff members turned out to support boycotting this business that has a $250,000 taxpayer subsidy.

El Tour de Tucson raises funds for charities including Tu Nidito, Water For People, and research into leukemia, lymphoma, and juvenile diabetes. In 2009, the event raised $1.8 million.

It’s an elite national event. About 9,000 cyclists participate, stay in hotels, dine in restaurants, hit the malls, and contribute an annual economic impact of $70 million to this region, according to the Metropolitan Tucson Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Yet, city employees turned out to support boycotting the event that helps pay their salaries, not to mention the recipient charities that help sick and dying children, and terminally ill people.

“The real truth about the newspapers and all the media, is they’re making payroll and a great deal of money from full-page ads from Rosemont Copper and that’s disappointing to me. They’re not banning those ads. To me, they should take stock in their community a little better and quit selling out to these pricks,” said County Supervisor Ray Carroll.

Points to ponder: Trying to pressure media to reject Rosemont’s advertising is a blatant attempt at censorship. They don’t want Rosemont’s side of the story heard.

“We are prepared to stand together with you to the end until we are victorious,” said County Supervisor Richard Elias.

Points to ponder: Here’s another politician promoting a boycott that will only hurt businesses. In this case, we have the added issue of a county official backing a boycott of revenue-producing events in the city.

“For self-preservation, do it with pressure endlessly applied, and that’s exactly how we plan to do it,” said Roger Featherstone, Southwest representative for Earthworks.

Points to ponder: Although Southern Arizona is blessed with rich mineral resources, it is cursed with a political environment that is anti-mining. U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Ariz., chairs the House Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands, and wants to ban new mines on public land in Pima County.

Ultimately, the eco-activists say they want to buy out the mine site with a combination of federal grants, county taxpayer money, and hoped-for private funding.

“That’s our long-term goal. I hope this will happen in the next few years, I don’t want to fight this battle again,” said Gayle Hartmann, president of Save the Scenic Santa Ritas. “Investors will lose interest if copper prices go down, so we have to be happy when copper prices go down.”

Contact Roger Yohem at ryohem@azbiz.com or (520) 295-4254. His Business Ink appears biweekly and weighs in on local political, social and business issues.

Copyright © 2010 Inside Tucson Business