Saving the Salt

[Don Martin]

I didn't build for 4 years to stay home. Scaaty Racing is running this year. My crew and this Studebaker are getting salty this year. Hope to get an A license. Besides I only haul it 1800 miles one way. I am closer than others.

[Interested Observer]

Is there documentation as to the historical thickness and chemical composition of the “salt”?  Presumably, some sort of survey and assay must have been done for scientific purposes or curiosity, or prior to the commencement of “mining” to justify the investment.  Wouldn’t the Utah geological records or old BLM have something on this?

Since Intrepid’s “Metal Recovery Salt” is 50% to 80% sodium chloride, it would be interesting to know how much of this has been removed and shipped.  If they haven’t shipped any significant NaCl, where is this monumental stockpile of salt that came off the flats?

And, as questioned by others earlier, what is the composition of the “brine” that gets pumped?  Since Intrepid evaporates the brine they collect, where does the pumped brine come from?    Is there any appreciable salt in it?    Or, are they just pumping what is essentially water out onto the flats so when it dissolves what is left there, it can then be re-collected and processed?

[Eldon S]

We got ours started today also. Planning on going until we get there or someone tells us not to come

[Bob Drury]

  I.O.,  I would bet my bippy that no one from the BLM can answer any of your questions either.  Its sort of like the Blind misleading the Blind........
                                                                                                           One Run, out..........................

[Bob Drury]

  uh, I know, I know, pick me!!!  They make MONEY!!!

[Bob Drury]

  My final question of the week............  Has anyone asked Ron Main how much it cost per belly dump trailer to haul the salt He hauled for His admirable yet rebuffed test? 
  Also (I lied... see above) any idea How many cubic feet or tonnage or however they calculate the load do those type of trailers usually carry?
  If we knew the answer's to the above we might be able to calculate the Cost the BLM needs to pull out of their upcoming Christmas Party fund to fix the Salt Flats Debacle.
  Let's see, that would be:  lets say 15 miles X 5miles (just a guess) =75 square miles X one foot deep (we aren't greedy) =  (help, I ran out of fingers and toes...)

[SPARKY]

We may be able to fire inn  iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

[Phil Bennett]

From a spectator perspective my main concern is the condition of the salt getting to and from the pits. We're in a rental RV and the last thing we would want is to be getting stuck, or going through damp salty mush which ruins the RV. I'm sure this is all part of the consideration in getting courses prepared is making sure the pit area and access routes are also in decent state. I really hope SW gets the green light but do feel apprehensive about taking this rental out there if the salt isn't like it was in 2013 when we last got out there.

[distributorguy]

I'm just reading between the lines here (lol) and what I've learned from the last day's posts is that Intrepid pumps brine both from the surface and from horizontal drilling, and they return brine (I must assume its a very low salt concentration) back to the surface "voluntarily" so they are "saving" the salt flats?   That's pure genius.  We are the horse....

[JoeRider677]

We have to talk about pumping SLURRY. So much salty in the water it can not all go into solution. Wholesale salt for road application is only about $.03 a pound. I did a quick calculation yesterday and the 580,000 plus tons of water, with unknown salt content, will only cover 1,700 acres at 3". Just four courses of various length is 240 acres, no pit, no shut down, no access roads....
There's a lot of factors going on here, how much salt is in the mud? What's the content of 'good salt'. This has been a problem all my life, more questions than answers

[lvsalt]

finishing up the car today, still hopefull but we need 5 miles.

[RichFox]

In some past years the road in has been under water for a mile or more. And quite sticky. But we had a good course. I don't believe you will get stuck if you stay between the cones. But getting in and out can be messy.

[WhizzbangK.C.]

SO IF the "brine" that is pumped out onto the flats by Intrepid is not a true saturated solution, doesn't that mean that it will dissolve some of the existing crust, just like rain water does? Then as it filters down into the ground it will carry the extra dissolved salts with it, back into the Intrepid wells eventually.

It seems to me that unless they are pumping a true saturated solution that would precipitate salts out on the surface as evaporation occurs, then they are not really living up to the spirit of the agreements. More like they are pushing the existing salts down into their wells, and getting the expenses subsidized by others. 

[hotrod]

Good point!
It is that old bugaboo unintended consequences. They might be adding lots of salt to the entire salt deposit but in the process of becoming a saturated solution stripping salt from the top layer and transporting it deeper into the deposit.

Hmmmm

[donpearsall]

From a spectator perspective my main concern is the condition of the salt getting to and from the pits. We're in a rental RV and the last thing we would want is to be getting stuck, or going through damp salty mush which ruins the RV. I'm sure this is all part of the consideration in getting courses prepared is making sure the pit area and access routes are also in decent state. I really hope SW gets the green light but do feel apprehensive about taking this rental out there if the salt isn't like it was in 2013 when we last got out there.

You mean like last year's BUB after Speedweek got cancelled? We had to drive a least a mile in saltwater to get to the pits.