Pinto Creek is a tributary of the
Salt River in
Gila County
Gila County ( ) is in the central part of the U.S. state of Arizona. As of the 2020 census, the population was 53,272. The county seat is Globe.
Gila County comprises the Payson, Arizona Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Gila County contains p ...
, Arizona, within the
Tonto National Forest. The creek winds for northward from the
Pinal Mountains
The Pinal Mountains (Yavapai: Walkame – "pine mountains", Western Apache: Dził Nnilchí' Diyiléé – "pine-burdened mountain") are a mountain range located in Gila County, Arizona. They have a maximum elevation of at Pinal Peak and a promine ...
, through the
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Arizona ...
, before emptying into the tail of
Theodore Roosevelt Lake.
Since the 1980s, the Pinto Creek watershed has been the site of environmental disputes over water rights and mining operations.
Historically, the lower Pinto Creek was a rare
desert riparian
Desert riparian is a North American desert vegetation type (or biome) occurring in the bottoms of valleys, canyons, and other watercourses that have water at or near the surface most of the year.Pam MacKay, Mojave Desert Wildflowers, 2nd Ed., ...
stream that supported sycamore, cottonwood, willow, and ash trees, and a diversity of wildlife.
The creek started drying up in 2013 as a result of increased groundwater pumping by the
Pinto Valley Mine, despite the Forest Service holding instream flow rights. , mining continues while much of Pinto Creek remains dry year-round. Groundwater repletion is expected to take at least 100 years.
Mining
Pinto Valley Mine
In 1999 the Forest Service obtained an instream flow right to Pinto Creek, granting it the ability to require a minimum water flow from mining companies.
Carlota Mine
The Carlota Mine is an open pit copper mine located abreast of Pinto Creek about upstream from its outlet, encompassing both private and Forest Service lands.
The mine's copper deposit was discovered in the mid-1990s.
The
environmental impact statement for the mine was completed on June 22, 1997, while the plan of operation was completed in 1998. The mine began production on December 18, 2008, under the ownership of
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
-based
Quadra Mining Ltd. In 2010, Quadra Mining merged with
FNX Mining Company Inc. to form
Quadra FNX Mining. In 2012,
KGHM Polska Miedź acquired the Carlota Mine through its acquisition of Quadra FNX. In 2021, KGHM had plans to divest from the Carlota Mine.
In response to the original proposal for the Carlota Mine,
American Rivers
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
designated Pinto Creek as one of
America's Most Endangered Rivers
America's Most Endangered Rivers is a list of threatened rivers in the United States compiled by the nonprofit group American Rivers. First published in 1984, the annual list spotlights ten threatened rivers–rivers that are facing environmental ...
in 1996, 1997,
and 1998.
While the Carlota Mine extracted water from the Pinto Creek watershed, the Forest Service required the operation of devices to feed water back into the creek. These kept portions of the target area watered year-round.
References
{{reflist
Washes of Arizona
Rivers of Gila County, Arizona