Three of the five plants producing salt in Kansas are in Reno County at Hutchinson. One shaft mine 650 feet deep produces salt used mainly for stock and industrial purposes. Salt is also obtained at two plants by evaporation of brines formed by pumping water down through wells and this salt is refined for use in meat-packing plants and other establishments that prepare foods. Sand and gravel are obtained in Reno County from Pleistocene deposits in the Arkansas River valley. The gravel and sand are used for road surfacing and for concrete aggregate.
Volcanic ash is mined from two pits in Reno County.
One pit was opened in 1948 in the SE NE sec. The other pit, which likewise has been worked for several years, is situated in the center of sec. The ash is used by the county road department as a component in road-surfacing material. Web version Feb. 2001. Original publication date Aug. 1956.