U.S House overturns northern Arizona mining ban

The U.S. House yesterday passed a rule for the Dept. of Interior appropriations bill, with a provision that overturns the ban on mineral exploration and mining on 1 million acres of federal lands in northern Arizona, imposed by Interior Secretary Ken Salazar. The bill, HR 2584, passed by a vote of 205-131.

The affected lands are outside the boundaries of Grand Canyon National Park.

updated 7-27-11 12:08pm - clarification that the House passed a rule, but not the actual appropriations bill.