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FILLMORE, Utah — The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Fillmore Field Office has published the Notice of Availability for the Sevier Playa Potash Project Final Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in the Federal Register. If approved, the project will increase the availability of potassium, a federally recognized critical mineral. The Final EIS is available on the BLM ePlanning website at https://bit.ly/2CZPeWy.

Last month, the Trump Administration released, “A Federal Strategy to Ensure a Reliable Supply of Critical Minerals,” to make America’s economy and defense more secure. The strategy directs the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) to locate domestic supplies of those minerals, ensure access to information necessary for the study and production of minerals, and expedite permitting for minerals projects. This project is consistent with the strategy and with Executive and Secretary's orders for critical mineral commodities by increasing the availability of potassium (potash) from federal lands.

“The United States imports 90 percent of its potash from other countries,” said Joe Balash, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management. “This project could double our national production for Sulfate of Potash, thereby strengthening our local and national economies, and reducing our dependence on foreign minerals.”

Job creation is also an important priority for the Department of the Interior. This project is expected to create 275 jobs in the region during construction and maintain 175 full-time employees to operate the many facilities and structures over the 35-year lifespan of the project. Workers would be hired from the surrounding communities to support operations.

“As a good neighbor, the BLM is committed to exploring new avenues that support local economies and connect communities to their public lands,” said Kevin Oliver, West Desert District Manager. “The jobs created over the life of the Sevier Playa Potash project could provide important economic benefits to the nearby communities by increasing the local workforce by 4.5 percent.”

The project proponent, Crystal Peak Minerals, holds the rights to mineral leases on 124,223 acres of BLM and State of Utah lands on the Sevier Playa in Millard County, Utah. The area contains subsurface potassium-bearing saline brines that make the site viable for potash production. Potash is primarily used as agricultural fertilizer. The United States is one of the largest potash consumers in the world.

Electronic copies of the Final EIS can be acquired from the BLM by any of the following methods:

• E-mail: blm_ut_fm_sevier_playa_ potash_project@blm.gov
• Download the document from BLM’s ePlanning site at https://bit.ly/2CZPeWy
• Mail: Bureau of Land Management, Fillmore Field Office, Attn: Clara Stevens – Sevier Playa Potash Project, 95 East 500 North, Fillmore, UT 84631.

Copies of the Final EIS and supporting documents are available at the following locations:

1. The BLM Fillmore Field Office at the above address and;
2. The BLM West Desert District Office at 2370 South Decker Lake Blvd., West Valley City, UT 84119.

For additional information, please contact Clara Stevens at (801) 977-3100. Persons who use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to leave a message or question with the above individual. The FRS is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Replies are provided during normal business hours.