A proposed copper exploration project is moving into the Gleeson area. Exploration is active across the Courtland–Gleeson district. This is a neighbor-led effort to share accurate information, look out for one another, and make sure every landowner has a voice.
Diamondback Copper LLC, a subsidiary of Ivanhoe Electric (NYSE: IE), has staked federal mining claims and is exploring for copper in the historic Courtland–Gleeson Mining District. Much of this area is a split estate — where the surface and the minerals beneath it can be owned separately — so any Diamondback proposal can touch land across the community, in different ways for different parcels.
It's worth being clear-eyed: where mineral rights are held by others, we cannot simply keep exploration out indefinitely. We can wait and react — or we can engage now, while our cooperation still carries weight, and help shape the outcome on terms that protect this place.
New here? Start with What leverage do we actually have? → — an honest look at what a united community can, and can’t, do.
Your rights — and your leverage — depend on whether the minerals beneath your land are federally owned or privately owned. Neighbors are stronger working together. Split estate, explained →
Where the federal government owns the minerals, a company can seek access under federal mining law even without your permission — but you can negotiate royalties, surface protections, water safeguards, and reclamation. We believe owners get the strongest terms by negotiating together.
Where the minerals are privately owned — whether by you or by a third party — access generally requires an agreement with the mineral owner rather than a claim under federal mining law. If the minerals under your land are yours, that consent is yours to give, and it is real leverage. Don't agree to anything until you and your attorney have reviewed it. Do the CC&Rs apply to your lot? →
Not sure which applies to your parcel? It comes down to your deed and title history. See Research Your Parcel below for the public county and federal records where you can check it yourself.
As outside mining interests look closely at the land, minerals, and water around Gleeson, how we respond matters as much as what we're responding to. These are the principles we bring to the table — cooperative, united, and clear-eyed.
This isn't about villains. We don't assume bad faith from Diamondback or anyone else. Our job is simply to look out for our land, our water, our property values, and one another.
A company that wants to operate here needs a willing community as much as we need fair treatment. We're ready to be good-faith partners — and to expect the same in return.
We decide and negotiate together. No landowner should be approached alone, pressured, or asked to sign in isolation. Our unity is our best protection.
Any mining company is a business accountable to its investors. That's exactly why the protections that matter — water, reclamation, fair compensation, and how commitments survive a change of ownership — must be written into clear, enforceable agreements, not left to good intentions that can blur when things get hard. Compare the two drafts, side by side →
Our ability to shape the terms is greatest now, while cooperation still has value and before a resource determination or forced-access process shifts the ground. Staying informed and engaged lets us lead the conversation instead of reacting to it. What leverage do we actually have? →
Informed neighbors, acting together, decide their own future. That's the whole idea.
Cooperative posture. Unified front. Fair terms. No villains. That's how we protect this place — together.
In a split estate the minerals may be federally owned or privately owned — and the answer is a title question, found in your deed and in the public records. These are the places to look. For a definitive answer, a title company or a mineral-rights attorney can run a full title examination.
Your deed and your title insurance policy (the Schedule B exceptions) often state whether minerals were reserved or excepted. Note: silence does not mean you own them.
County Assessor — your parcel number and legal description. Recorder's document search — deeds, mineral reservations, and the chain of title.
BLM General Land Office Records — the government's first conveyance of your land. A patent issued under the Stock Raising Homestead Act of 1916 reserved the minerals to the United States.
BLM Mineral & Land Records System — search by township, range, and section to see active claims and who holds them. AZGS Mining Data holds historic district records.
For a non-federal lot, whether Article 10.16 can restrict mining depends on your minerals’ history: were they conveyed to you subject to the CC&Rs, or severed before the subdivision (Declaration recorded 1999–2000)? Check the Recorder’s chain of title and the severance date. Do the CC&Rs apply to your lot?
These links are offered for convenience and are not legal advice. Records research can be complex — consult a qualified Arizona title professional or attorney before relying on what you find.
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Have a question, a concern, or information to share? Email us or bring it to the next meeting — we want to hear it. We will never share your information.
Gleeson Together is a grassroots group of concerned neighbors, united in our effort to watch out for one another. We're property owners and residents of the Gleeson area who came together to share accurate, timely information and to make sure every landowner has a voice as decisions about our land, water, and community are made. No dues, no bureaucracy — just neighbors looking out for neighbors.
Gleeson Together is an independent, volunteer effort. We are not affiliated with, and do not represent, any property owners association or homeowners association. Nothing on this site is an official communication of any such association, and no one here speaks on its behalf.
Not necessarily. The current stage is exploration — drilling to test whether copper is present. Whether it becomes a mine is uncertain. But the agreements being discussed now would shape what could happen for decades, which is exactly why getting the terms right matters.
It depends on your parcel. Where the minerals are federally owned, a company can seek access under federal mining law — but you can negotiate the terms. Where the minerals are privately owned, access generally requires an agreement with the mineral owner.
We believe owners have far more protection and leverage acting together. Coordinated neighbors negotiate stronger, consistent terms; people approached one at a time are easier to divide and undervalue. Organizing also ensures no one is pressured into signing before the community understands the deal.
Water is a scarce and closely regulated resource in this part of Arizona. Strong agreements can require baseline testing, ongoing monitoring, priority for domestic wells, and remedies if water is affected — but these protections must be negotiated; they aren't automatic.
Three simple things: hold off on signing anything until you've talked with your own attorney and/or reviewed what this group has gathered, add your email so we can keep you informed, and come to the first meeting. Sharing this with neighbors — especially absentee owners — helps enormously.