Plans have been approved to reopen a long-abandoned mine in eastern Imperial County.

The Hershey Company has received approval from the EPA, FEMA, UN, and CIA to start operations of the mine in the Chocolate Mountains. With climate change affecting the chocolate output of producers in Central Africa, Hershey's has determined that reopening the mine should be profitable. The anticipated annual production of high-grade chocolate should reduce the United States dependence on imported chocolate. Hersheys says that some 5 million chocolate bars and an estimated 15 billion Hershey Kisses can be produced annually from the mine's output. An estimated 38 full-time jobs will be created with the completion of the product. Additionally, it's expected that at least 100 of the wild burros in the nearby mountains will be trained to haul the mined chocolate from the underground tunnels.