Our overflight examined the public lands known as Oak Flat, which soon could be owned by two multinational operators - Rio Tinto and BHP, who plan to construct the largest underground mine in North America, Resolution Copper. The copper mine would essentially turn the sacred area into a massive pit, sinking the land up to 1,115 ft and almost two miles across.

Oak Flat, land sacred to Native Americans including Western Apache and Yavapai Tribes, is a place of worship; the area is the home of Apache deities and represents a connection between heaven and earth

After many court cases, the mining proposal continues to advance. The court decisions could set a precedent for future cases involving extraction at the cost of Tribal sovereignty, religious freedom, and land-based beliefs and practices.

Oak Flat has been protected since President Eisenhower's decree in 1955 that closed the area to mining. Oak Flat continued to be coveted by mining companies, and in 2014 mechanism to transfer the land to Rio Tinto was attached to a military spending bill.

The mine poses a massive threat to waterways like the Gila and nearby communities like Superior, and would use at least 250 billion gallons of water over forty years, in an area experiencing water shortages. Resolution Copper claims the copper will be sent to a mill in Utah, but as that smelter does not have enough capacity to process additional ore, it would be sent overseas to China to be processed and sold back to the US.

EcoFlight's flight partners are working to protect the area, known as Chí’chil Biłdagoteel to the Apache, and safeguard land-based religious practices.