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Great Salt Lake Minerals Corp. (GSL) of Ogden has significantly altered its plans for an expansion originally unveiled in 2009. The new plan, as submitted to government governing bodies for approval, dramatically reduces the scope of development, consisting primarily of expansion of the firm's solar evaporation pond system. The lead agency reviewing GSL's application is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, but the process also involves the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Utah state regulatory agencies.
Since 1970, GSL has been extracting potassium sulfate from the Great Salt Lake through a natural evaporation process in massive ponds excavated along the shore of the lake. Also know as sulfate of potash (SOP), the substance is used as a crop nutrient by farmers. GSL is the only domestic producer of the product, used in the cultivation of fruits, nuts and vegetables.
Potassium sulfate occurs naturally in the lake and is in high demand...