San Juan County copper mine shuts down, leaving behind unpaid workers, environmental fears

No cases of the coronavirus had been confirmed in San Juan County as of Tuesday, but the outbreak has already claimed its first economic casualty in southeast Utah.Lisbon Valley Mining Company (LVMC), which operates Utah’s second largest copper mine 35 miles southeast of Moab, shut down abruptly last week. Roughly 65 employees were furloughed on March 18 and paychecks due two days later were not deposited.In a statement obtained by The Salt Lake Tribune, the company said “global econ