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Westvaco Mine and Plant (FMC)

Producer in Sweetwater county in Wyoming, United States with commodities Sodium, Oil Shale, Sodium Carbonate, Soda Ash
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Sections on this page
  1. Identification information
  2. Geographic coordinates
  3. Site location context
  4. Geographic areas
  5. Public Land Survey System information
  6. Commodities
  7. Materials information
  8. Alteration
  9. Host and associated rocks
  10. Nearby scientific data
  11. Geologic structures
  12. Ore body information
  13. Controls for ore emplacement
  14. Economic information about the deposit and operations
  15. Mining district
  16. Ownership information
  17. Workings at the site
  18. Links to other databases
  19. Bibliographic references
  20. General comments
  21. Reporter information

Geologic information

Identification information

Deposit ID 10080547
MRDS ID W031825
MAS/MILS ID 560370282
Record type Site
Current site name Westvaco Mine and Plant (FMC)
Alternate or previous names Westvaco Mine and Facility (FMC), Westvaco Mine (FMC), Westvaco Mine, FMC Green River Trona Mine, Green River FMC Mine, Intermountain Chemical Co. Mine, FMC Westvaco Mine
Included sites Green River Trona District

Geographic coordinates

Point of reference Plant
Geographic coordinates: -109.80954, 41.62031 (WGS84)
Location accuracy 100(meters)
Relative position Mine is extensive underground. Used some of the main mine buildings as the location.

Site location context

Political divisions (FIPS codes)

Sweetwater(county)

Wyoming(state)

United States(country)

North America(continent)

Land(continent)

USGS map quadrangles

Little America(quadrangle 1:24,000 scale)

Rock Springs(quadrangle 1:100,000 scale)

Rock Springs(quadrangle 1:250,000 scale)

Hydrologic units (watersheds)

Blacks Fork(hydrologic unit)

Upper Green(hydrologic accounting unit)

Great Divide-Upper Green(hydrologic subregion)

Upper Colorado(hydrologic region)

Geographic areas

Country State County
United States Wyoming Sweetwater

Public Land Survey System information

Meridian Township Range Section Fraction State
6th Principal 019N 110W 15 SE Wyoming

Comments on the location information

  • Shaft No. 3 is in T. 19N, R110W, sec. 21, SE, SE, SE, SE. Shown and labeled on Little America 7.5' quadrangle map.

Commodities

Commodity Importance
Sodium Primary
Oil Shale Tertiary
Sodium Carbonate Primary
Soda Ash Primary

Comments on the commodity information

  • TRONA BEDS GENERALLY OVER 90% PURE. HALITE IN BEDS LESSENS VALUE

Materials information

Materials Type of material
Trona Ore
Calcite Gangue
Dolomite Gangue
Gaylussite Gangue
Shortite Gangue
Northupite Gangue
Pirssonite Gangue
Nahcolite Gangue
Wegscheiderite Gangue

Alteration

  • (Local) Trona May Be In Part A Diagenetic Product Of Reaction Between Evaporite Minerals And Na-Rich Water From The Weathering Of Andesitic Tuffs Of Green River Formation. Geochemical Studies (Parker, Et Al, 1971) Have Shown That The Green River Was Probably A Source Of Na-Rich Water. Solution Activity And Reorganization Of Material Is Evident Including Enlarged Grainsize And Secondary Redeposition Of Trona (Parker, Et Al, 1971).

Host and associated rocks

  • Host or associated Host
    Rock type Sedimentary Rock > Chemical Sediment > Evaporite
    Rock unit name Green River, Wilkins Peak Member: Trona And Evaporite Bearing Strata
    Rock description Green River, Wilkins Peak Member: Trona And Evaporite Bearing Strata
    Stratigraphic age (youngest) Eocene

Nearby scientific data

Plant (1) -109.80954, 41.62031
ListMap

Economic information

Geologic structures

Type of structure Local
Structure description Rock Springs Uplift, East Of Trona Area, Stratigraphic High During Much Of Green River Fm. Depositional Period. It Created A Barrier Restricting Water Circulation And Aiding Evaporite Precipitation.
Type of structure Regional
Structure description Basin And Range Province; Green River Basin; East Of Overthrust Belt, South Of Wind River Mountains.

Ore body information

  • General form TABULAR: BLANKET
    Depth to top 457.2M

Controls for ore emplacement

  • Chemical Precipitation From Waters Of 15,000 Sq. Mi. Lake Gosuite During One Million Yr. Period Of Aridity And Restricted Circulation.

Economic information about the deposit and operations

Operation type Underground
Development status Producer
Commodity type Non-metallic
Deposit size Large
Significant Yes
Discovery year 1938
Discoverer Mountain Fuel Supply Co.
Year of first production 1952

Mining district

District name Green River Basin
District name Green River Trona District

Ownership information

  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Fmc Corp.
    Year 1978
  • Type Owner-Operator
    Owner Intermountain Chemical Company
    First year 1952

Comments on the production information

  • Ore production capacity greater than 3,000,000 tonnes/year. (Mining Magazine, Jan. 1989, p. 45)
  • "By 1957 it [Westvaco Mine] was delivering about two-thirds of the natural soda ash produced in the United States" (Fahey, 1962, p. 1)

Workings at the site

  • Type of workings Underground
    Overall depth 457.2M

Comments on the workings information

  • 12/79 FMC ANNOUNCED TECHNILOGICAL BREAKTHROUGH IN SOLUTION MINING THUS CUTTING COSTS IN TRONA MINING. 150 PEOPLE WILL BE NEEDED PER 1 MILLION TONS OF ARE MINED AS OPPOSED TO 450 NEEDED PRESENTLY. (1979)-INCREASING PLANT BY 250,000 TONS OF ANNUAL CAPACITY .
  • As of 2012 (or sometime prior) most of the mining is conventional underground, but some is by solution mining.

Comments on development

  • VAST DEPOSIT FOUND WHILE DRILLING OIL AND GAS TEST WELL. MAJOR MINE EXPANSION 1976.
  • History of the mine is all scrambled. Fahey, 1962, states that the first well, Joh Hay Jr, Well 1, was drilled in 1938. It is the hole that discovered the trona. The Westvaco mine opened in 1947. This record as it preexisted claims first production was in 1952.

Reference information

Bibliographic references

  • Production

    Mining Magazine, Jan. 1989, p. 45.

  • Deposit

    PARKER, R.B, ed., 1971, Contribuitions to Geology--Trona Issue: Larmie, Wyoming, Univ. of Wyoming, v. 10, no. 1, p. 1-72.

  • Deposit

    Wigg, Grundy, and Dynni, 1995, Trona resources in the Green river basin, southwest Wyoming: USGS OFR 95-476, 88 p.

  • Deposit

    WYO GEOL SURV OPEN FILES [newMRDS 10133390, MAS 0560370519]

  • Deposit

    FAHEY, J.J., 1962, Saline minerals of the Green River Formation: USGS Professional Paper 405, 50 p.

  • Deposit

    Bradley, W.H., and Eugster, H.P., 1969, USGS Professional Paper 496B, p. 9, 17, 35.

  • Deposit

    Dyni, J.R., and Jones, R.W., eds., 1998, Proceedings of the First International Soda Ash Conference, Vol. II: Wyoming State Geological Survey Public Information Circular No. 40, 215 p.

  • Deposit

    CAMERON ENGINEERS WYO MINE FORECAST 1969

General comments

Subject category Comment text
General MAS record 0560370023 (newMRDS 10181992) had very little information for the so called "FMC Westvaco Mine #1, #2. It gave the location as T.19N, R. 110W, Sec. 15, SE, reporter as the IFOC 1-12-1983, and "mine n0. 33 IS 1.5 MILES sw OF PLANT" in the references field. Also in the references field was "CAMERON ENGINEERS WYO MINE REVIEW FORECAST 1969." And "REVISED BY MILES 10-79". A.B. Wilson thinks that the mine name refers to the Westvaco wells nos. 1 and 2 (Wiig, Grundy, and Dyni, 1995, USGS OFR 95-476). Mine shaft no. 3 is about 1.5 mi SW of the main plant site, as shown on the Little America quadrangle map. The comment about mine no. 33 is probably a typo.
Deposit PARKER, ET AL, 1971, (REF. 2) GIVES A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT OF THE GENESIS OF THE GREEN RIVER TRONA DEPOSITS, INCLUDING THE GEOCHEMISTRY, MINERALOGY, PALEOENVIRONMENT, AND THE MINING OF TRONA.
General FMC Westvaco No 6 Mine [MAS 0560370028, newMRDS 102062993] had non-specific information and no verifiable sources. Reported by IFOC 23-nov-1983. Supposed refs were as follows: MESA MET-NONMET MINE FILE REF ENERGY RESOURCES MAP OF WY OWN/OP DRAVO CORPORATION USBM PROD TABULATIONS. Thus, A.B. Wilson merged this information in 10080547 and deleted the 10206293.
Deposit WILKINS PEAK MEMBER OF THE GREEN RIVER FORMATION HAS OVER 25 EXTENSIVE TRONA BEDS RANGING UP TO 37 FEET THICK AND COVERING AN AREA UP TO 850 SQ. MILES. ELEVEN BEDS ARE OVER 6 FT. THICK. A TOTAL OF 50 BILLION TONS OF TRONA ARE ESTIMATED FOR THE AREA.
Deposit Deposit was discovered by drilling the John Hay, Jr., well no. 1. A.B. Wilson changed discovery method from "Mineral in place" to "drilling".
General Intermountain Chemical Co Mine (MAS 0560370163, newMRDS 10181864) record created by IFOC on 23-nov-1983 contains no additional information other than a reference to Bradley and Eugster, 1969, USGS PP-496B. A planning document on the city of Rock Springs, WY, website (www.rswy.net) states: "Food Machinery Corporation operatin under its wholly-owned division Intermountain Chemical Company, built a $15 million plant at Westvaco, some 16 miles west of Green River in 1952. A series of mines, refineries and expansion occurred between 1962 and 1982." Therefore, A.B. Wilson concludes that this is another name for the Westvaco (FMC) mine.

Reporter information

Type Date Name Affiliation Comment
Reporter 1982-05-01 Sutphin, David M. U.S. Geological Survey
Reporter 1983-11-23 Intermountain Field Operations Center U.S. Bureau of Mines MAS record 0560370024 (=newMRDS 10303511).
Reporter 1983-11-23 South Dakota School of Mines U.S. Bureau of Mines
Reporter 1983-12-01 Intermountain Field Operations Center (IFOC) U.S. Bureau of Mines
Reporter 1989-08-01 Beougher, Dee (Spanski, Gregory T.) U.S. Geological Survey
Editor 2009-04-01 Wilson, Anna B. U.S. Geological Survey

Beyond USGS

Supplemental information added by qvyshift.com. Not part of the original USGS MRDS record.

Maps centered on this site