Show CORE SALT BEDS IN POTASH QUEST fertilizer AS WELL AS OIL IS GOAL SOUGHT IN SALT VALLEY WELL OF UTAH SOUTHERN COMPANY drilling operations on the utah southern oil company s test well in salt valley 15 miles north of moab Is progressing steadily the depth being around 1700 feet for several hundred feet the drill has been penetrating salt A core of this material Is being kept for los angeles interests who own extensive potash rights in salt valley the utah southern has no interest in the potash rights and is merely coring the salt formation as a matter of courtesy it is understood that james E babcock W M armstrong and david walter all of los angeles are the interests heading the potash enterprise there is little commercial production of potash in the united states although there has been considerable prospecting for commercial deposits at the present time a shaft Is being sunk east of artesla N M in an attempt to develop a potash deposit discovered through drilling the potassium salt beds which cover a large area of grand county lave long been looked upon by geologists as a likely source of potash and drilling has shown its presence potash in considerable quantity was found in the crescent eagle well located a short distance from salt valley samples of salt taken from this well showed remarkably high values in potash the salt valley well known as the balsley no 1 is being drilled by the utah southern in association with the mountain states petroleum company as a test of the pennsylvanian Pennsyl and ordovician oil formations it is estimated that the bottom of the salt beds will be from 2500 to feet and the drilling program calls tor A depth of feet or more if necessary officials of the utah southern state that any potash discovered in its grounds could be extracted without conflicting with the oil operations as the potash would occur in formations considerably above the oil horizon uc |