PHOENIX— Conservation organizations and Tribal advocates filed a petition today with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals asking a larger panel of judges to reconsider a recent ruling that cleared the way for the transfer of Oak Flat to a private multinational mining company.

“We strongly believe that the judges should reconsider this deeply contentious decision that allowed the Trump administration to hand Oak Flat over to a private mining company while lawsuits challenging the transfer are ongoing,” said Russ McSpadden, Southwest conservation advocate at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Oak Flat is a sacred place and an ecological treasure that has long been public land belonging to all of us. Allowing its destruction would be a profound and entirely avoidable mistake.”

Today’s petition challenges a split decision by a three-judge panel March 13 denying an effort to block the Trump administration from transferring the sacred Apache site and popular campground in eastern Arizona to Resolution Copper while litigation proceeds.

“This decision threatens a place of immense cultural, ecological and recreational value,” said Sandy Bahr, director of the Sierra Club’s Grand Canyon Chapter. “We urge the 9th Circuit to reconsider and ensure that Oak Flat is protected while the courts fully review the legality and significant harm of this land exchange.”

The petition focuses on the government’s appraisal of the federal lands that were exchanged, which valued the billions of pounds of copper as worthless, resulting in a sweetheart deal to Resolution at the expense of U.S. taxpayers. It also highlights the strong, detailed dissent by Judge Johnnie Rawlinson, which said the “nonconforming appraisal flouted the provisions of the legislation authorizing the land exchange.”

“Oak Flat is a sacred place that carries deep cultural and spiritual meaning for Tribal Nations across Arizona,” said Maria Dadgar, executive director of the Inter Tribal Association of Arizona, Inc. “The federal government has a responsibility to respect and protect these living traditions. We are asking the court to fully consider what is at stake before allowing irreversible harm to a place that has been central to Indigenous identity and religious practice for generations.”

Today’s en banc petition argues that the stakes of the case — including harms to Tribal religious practices, public lands and endangered species — warrant consideration by a larger panel of appellate judges.

“This appeal is about whether the government can push through a flawed environmental review and trigger the land transfer before the courts have finished their work,” said Curt Shannon, interim director at the Arizona Mining Reform Coalition. “We’re asking the court to take a closer look at the merits of our case before allowing that decision to stand.”

The underlying lawsuit says the U.S. Forest Service’s environmental impact statement for the Oak Flat land exchange violated federal law by failing to properly analyze the potential damage to waters, public lands and wildlife. The agency’s analysis triggered the transfer of more than 2,400 acres of public land that was part of the Tonto National Forest, including Oak Flat, to Resolution Copper, a subsidiary of multinational mining companies Rio Tinto and BHP.

The company’s proposed block-cave mining operation would permanently destroy the site, causing the ground above to collapse into a massive crater, and deplete regional groundwater supplies.

Located about 60 miles east of Phoenix, Oak Flat is a site of profound religious and cultural importance to the San Carlos Apache Tribe and other Tribal Nations. The area also provides habitat for threatened and endangered species and is widely used for camping, climbing and other outdoor recreation.

“Oak Flat is a valuable climbing area with a rich history that draws climbers from across the globe. It is a cornerstone of the region’s outdoor recreation landscape and benefits the local economy,” said Erik Murdock, deputy director at Access Fund. “Allowing this transfer to proceed now risks the loss of access to a truly irreplaceable climbing area. We’re urging the court to step in and preserve Oak Flat while the legal issues are fully resolved.”

The conservation groups and Tribal organizations are represented by attorneys with the Western Mining Action Project and the Center for Biological Diversity. Montgomery & Interpreter, PLC also represents the Inter Tribal Association of Arizona, Inc.