The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1913-03-27
FIND POTASH IN
COLUMBIA Marsh

In connection with the search for
potash in the west which is being
made by the United States Geological
Survey great number of localities
have been visited by the survey geo.
logists, especially in the Great Basin.
Shallow desert lake beds, so-called dry
lakes or playas, are extensively dis
tributed throughout this region. Most
OF these playas contain salts to
greater or less extent, and nearly all
these salts show an analysis from |
to per cent or more of potash. Few
of these lake beds show evidence of
having ever been submerged to a con-
siderable depth, and the deposits that
lie in the lowest parts or most of them
are porbably only alternating strata of
clays and saline muds, with thin salt
crusts produced by periodic flooding
and drying up. Large and massive
deposits of crystalline salts can hard
lv be expected, except as the result of
the drying up of very extensive and
deep saline lake, or as representing
the continuous accumulation of saline
matter in water body during a very
long period of time. Record Of the ex-
istence of such lakes in prehistoric
times is to be found in certain parts
of the Great Basin region. Contrary
to the general assumption, however.
the extensive lake basins are, in fact,
relatively few. 1t is evident, there
fore, that the search for the important
salt bodies of this type has of neces-
sity been narrowed to a relatively few
localities
The area in Searles lake and the
Panamint valley, Cal, of public land
withdrawn from entry on account of
their potash contents are the lowest
parts of two ancient lake basins.
whose waters at their highest stage
probably connected through narrow
strait. Both basins were filed by
overflow from the drainage of Owens
river, and in both the salts are be-
lieved to have accumulated by natural
concentration of the normal drainage
waters from that source. The salt
body in Searls lake lies at the surface
of the ground and was located in
claims for the soda il contained be-
fore interest in potash had been seri-
ously awakened The mud flat that
forms the bottom of the Panamint
valley has recently been located in
"potash Claims, but without any
evidence that can be taken to indicate
the existence there of valuable
saline .aass. The salt that shows on
the sHriace in the Panamint valley is
relatively insignificant in amount and
tests for potash in the surface salts
or ground waters of this valley do not
run higher than the average of such
salts in mud flats and dry lakes gen.
orally The lands have, therefore,
been withdrawn on evidence of a more
general character, the theory being
that the former larger lake of the
Panamint valley, when it dried up,
might have deposited bed of salt as
large as or larger than that now exist
ing on the surface in Searles lake. The
Panamint valley is relatively narrow,
and the streams from the rugged
mountain slopes that border it have
spread their. fans far into the center
of the valley. Drilling, possibly to 8
considerable depth, will be needed to
test the possibility of buried salt de-
posits in this valley, and if such de-
posits are found to be present, it is be-
lieved that they will be essentially
like those of the Searles deposit.
Columbia marsh, Nevada, is the
evaporation pan of a shallow lake.
posit have shown some exceptionally
high percentages of potash. No impor-
tant beds of clear crystal salts have
yet been found in the marsh, and the
possible commercial value of such
deposit still remains a subject for fur
ther investigation. Pending such work
these lands also have been withdrawn
from entry.