U.S. appeals court rejects bid to block land swap for Rio’s Arizona copper mine

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(Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court on Friday ruled that the federal government may give away thousands of acres in Arizona to Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) Plc for a copper mine, upholding a previous ruling and rejecting a request from Native Americans who said the land has religious and cultural import.

The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling essentially defers to a 2014 decision made by the U. S. Congress and then-President Barack Obama to give the land to Rio for its Resolution Copper project.