Potash - where does it come from - where does it go?

[BaltACD]

Potash /ˈpɒtæʃ/ is any of various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form.^[1] The name derives from pot ash, which refers to plant ashes soaked in water in a pot, the primary means of manufacturing the product before the industrial era. The word potassium is derived from potash.^[2]

Potash is produced worldwide at amounts exceeding 30 million tonnes per year, mostly for use in fertilizers. Various types of fertilizer-potash thus constitute the single largest global industrial use of the element potassium. Potassium was first derived by electrolysis of caustic potash (aka potassium hydroxide), in 1808.

[JJB9]

I believe that early in last century the soap making companies also used Potash for their products. I know Bon-Ami in Connecticut used it.

JJB

[SealBook27]

This has me wondering about the few cars I see on the Delmarva Division of NS. Must be incoming loads, but the closest thing to a fertilizer plant that I know of around here would be Jimmie Perdue's chicken manure pelletizing plant. But he ships the stuff out to fertilizer plants somewhere else. Anybody have a clue as to who would be receiving potash here on the Delmarva Peninsula? Maybe I need to do some more exploring.

[SD70M-2Dude]

CN just ran their first Saskatchewan-St. John potash train (symbol B730) this week, presumably as a replacement for the supply from the idled mine.  I believe it will be exported through the port there, so in the future this will likely be a winter-only move with shipping via the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway taking over during the ice-free season.

[Ottawan]

The large underground Picaddilly Potash mine near Bathurst NB is being closed due to depressed prices and exports to China declining.  Most was shipped by rail to the St John NB harbour for export. Saskatchewan potash costs are 1/3 those in NB.  Early settlers would burn the trees and then sell the potassium-rich potash as their first "cash crop". 

[tree68]

Could go back out and mine guano off deserted islands...

[power58]

The Bonneville Salt Flats have been reducing in thickness for years due to Potash mining by Intrepid Potash in Wendover Utah. The Salt is taken off the Flats and moved across Route 80 at Around Exit 4 to the other side into settling tanks were the potash is removed. In 1949 the salt was  12 inches thick today it is barley 1 inch thick. Most of the potash I'm told goes to Japan.

Save the Salt for Land Speed Racing.

[ERail]

Thanks for the info, Bruce.

[Bruce Kelly]

The vast majority of the potash through Eastport comes south in unit trains that get offloaded for export at Terminal 5 on the Willamette River (near its confluence with the Columbia) just north of Portland. I saw an O-EOT5 come south by my house just two days ago. There are also occasional unit trains through Eastport headed for Little Mountain, UT, and for the export terminal at Longview, WA. Longview was a more prominent U.S. export destination for this potash traffic lane back before the Portland terminal opened. Manifests also bring loose blocks of potash south, these cars winding up at fertilizer plants all over the West, including the one at Interstate, ID, just a few miles from my home, and quite possibly down to California.

[ERail]

Sorry to bump an old thread but this one has some useful info such that I'd rather put my questions here as opposed to starting a new thread.

I've read that CP hands off potash to UP at Eastport, Idaho.  How much of it then goes to places like Roseville, CA as opposed to Portland, OR?

[Poppa_Zit]

There are huge phosphate mines in Central Florida south of the Lakeland area.

[Anonymous]

Yes, Saskatchewan is a large exporter of pota***o be used as an agricultural fertilizer.

If you are interested you can see you can see at least part of a potash mine in high resolution using Goggle Earth at –
52 05’ 19.03” N
106 22’ 32.66” W

You can see the mine processing building and the conical silos used to store the potash. Only part of the rail yard is visible at high resolution. The lake (darker blue) to the north east (low rez.) never freezes, no mater how cold the winter. Saskatchewan winters are very cold. The whitish areas are slag dumps. These “mountains” can be seen for miles on the flat prairies.

[nanaimo73]

QUOTE: Originally posted by lrenee

All I want to know is what is Mark Hemphill doing in Iraq?[?]

Mark W. Hemphill is the Deputy Senior Consultant for Railways, Iraq Reconstruction Management Office (IRMO).

These articles will give you an idea what he does-
American railroader with the Iraqi Republic Railways
Trains, July 2004 page 28
railroading in Iraq under war conditions
( "DEGMAN, RICK", IRAQ, RAILROADER, WAR, TRN )

Reflections on my brief career
Trains, September 2004 page 52
railroading in Iraq under war conditions
( "DEGMAN, RICK", IRAQ, RAILROADER, WAR, TRN )

[chiripero]

I agree with Stack ("What a smart group of people on here'). There is so much to learn on this planet and Trains Forum is a great place for some of that knowledge. I live about an hour or so South of Trona, CA and have been to that area to photograph trains and have dug in the lake bed for trona. Several years ago I spent the night in Carlsbad, NM and the locals there told me about the potash mining there. Very interesting subject. Thanks to all who responded to this interesting thread.
--Bob Bowen, Helendale, CA

[jakebud]

As I recall, there are some long abandonned potash related facilities just east of Alliance, Nebraska. You cane see that stuff while following the BNSF on NE Route 2.

SPIKE

[Anonymous]

for a great reference / TRAINS magazine did a article about a year & half ago about minerals hauled on the Rio-Grande. they give nice overviews of most minerals including potash and others ( I looked through my back issues and it must be out on loan so dont know exact date/my guess is april 2004). That article also tells of how slovay(the company) bought & shut down one of the mines to close out competetion.

[Anonymous]

All I want to know is what is Mark Hemphill doing in Iraq?[?]

[Medina1128]

I used to clean pot-ash from my ashtray when I was a lot younger and more foolish, but that's another story.

[tatans]

Want info on potash go to : www.potashcorp.com then click on "At a glance"
plenty of info here, the statistics are staggering.

[lechee]

Do they still run trains into potash utah? That is a very senic branch and has been used in several movies.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by cementmixr

QUOTE: Originally posted by Ray Dunakin

If I remember correctly, potash also comes from Searles Lake in Trona, CA. That's in the Mojave desert.

Is that the former SP line that had a tunnel fire in the early 80's? (featured in a 1983 Trains article, "Rx For a Broken Jawbone.")

I just learned that the SP's Jawbone branch goes from Mohave to Searles, where it connects to the Trona RR. Coal is hauled in to Searles for the Trona chemical plant, and Soda Ash and other chemicals are hauled out. Of course, it is Union Pacific now, and not SP.

There is a new book on this line:
JAWBONE: Sunset on the Lone Pine
http://www.omnirr.com/

[Anonymous]

Thanks very much to all that responded. Geez, what a smart group of people who hang out here.

Thanks again,
- - Stack

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by bobwilcox

SK has about a 3,000 year supply at current world consumption rates. Another source of the material is at Carlsbad, NM.

Carlsbad, NM has a large and interesting yard just east of town. There is a company that cleans and services the RR cars in the yard, preping them for their next assignment. You can get very close to the yard and may photograph and see both the local shortline(SD EMD's) and various BNSF Equipment.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Ray Dunakin

If I remember correctly, potash also comes from Searles Lake in Trona, CA. That's in the Mojave desert.

Is that the former SP line that had a tunnel fire in the early 80's? (featured in a 1983 Trains article, "Rx For a Broken Jawbone.")

[robscaboose]

On a historical note before potash was found naturally in the West. Most of the Soda Ash came from Solvay (Syracuse) NY. My Grandfather was a RR Engineer for the Solvay Process Plant for 30 +yrs. After it was found naturally out West the plant shut down. It was a loss of many jobs, but the manufacturing process made Ononadga Lake one of the most poluted (an still is) lakes in the nation. (30+ years after the plant closed you still cannot swim or eat the few fi***hat live in the water)

Rob

[bobwilcox]

WY does not have potash. There are large trona (soda ash) deposits just west of Grenn River, WY on the UP.

[ozzy01]

Doesn't potash also come from Wyoming. Seems there was a Trains article from the 80's with an UP map that showed the branch line it was on.

[bobwilcox]

The mine at Searles Lake has made both trona and potash in the past. Trona is refined into soda ash. Soda ash goes into the manufacutre of glass and other processes needing sodium. Potash is a source of pottasium. Virtually all of it is used for fertilizer.

[Ray Dunakin]

If I remember correctly, potash also comes from Searles Lake in Trona, CA. That's in the Mojave desert.