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occurrences in the WIPP site for the purpose of preparing an environmental impact statement.
The concentrations and tonnages of potassium as sylvite and langbeinite in the
potash ores zones within the site, as previously determined by the U.S. Geological
Survey, were used.
Two groups of deposits, designated as mining units and occurring partly in the
site, were determined to be commercial. Value determinations were based on estimated
operating and capital costs of current (1977) mine-mill operations in the Carlsbad area.
The present value of the parts of the mining units within the site, in terms of Federal and
State taxes, royalties, and reasonable bonus bids, was estimated to be about $58.3
million. The authors estimated that about 24.5 million st of potash products would be
produced from within the site over the life of the project. Additional 18.2 million st of
potash products could be recovered from currently subeconomic mineralization within the
site at some time in the future, if potash becomes more valuable compared to production
costs.
U.S. Geological Survey, 1978a
This repon, authored by C. L. Jones, consists of about 16 pages of text and 421
pages of basic data from the 21 drill holes logged by the U.S. Geological Survey on
behalf of the WIPP project. The tabulation includes lithologic and geophysical logs of all
borings, chemical analyses, and x-ray determinations and calculations to establish the
modal mineralogic compositions of core samples from potash ore zones and mineralized
salt beds.
Mineralogy was detennined by x-ray diffraction and chemical composition by
atomic absorption, titration, and gravimetric methods. Three laboratories were involved
in the chemical analyses (Skyline Labs, Inc., Herron Testing Laboratories, Inc., and the
U.S. Bureau of Mines). X-ray diffraction analysis was by the U.S. Geological Survey.
U.S. Geological Survey, 1978b
This U.S. Geological Survey (1978b) repon, authored by C. B. John and others,
states that seven ore zones (10th, 9th, 8th, 5th, 4th, 3ed, and 2nd) in the WIfP area
(control zones I-IV) are considered to meet or exceed the U.S. Geological Survey (now
BLM) leasing standards of 4 ft of 4% K 2 0 as langbeinite or 4 ft of 10% K 2 0 as sylvite,
termed "lease grade" by the Survey. Using subsurface geologic mapping of the potash ore
zones and data developed in other reports (U.S. Geological Survey, 1978a; Sandia
National Laboratories, 1977a), the repon states that these ore zones (at lease-grade
minimum) contain 353.3 million st of potash ore, which is composed of 315.7 mi11ion st
of measured ore and 37.6 million st of indicated ore. The latter designation is reserved
for ore for which there is incomplete inspection and measurements, sampling is too
widely spaced, etc.
The most important ore zones in WIPP are the 4th and 10th at or above "lease
grade" that contain 218.5 million st of potash ore. The 4th ore zone contains the greatest
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