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. l\:l ..... co w market 2S is, to be used in air pollution control devices. Dawsonite could become a source of alumina rivaling bauxite deposits in the United States (Schramm, 1970). Trona is currently being mined co~~er- cially in southwestern Wyoming to produce soda ash. Halite, a standard salt, is also abundant in the deposits. The salts that were deposited or concentrated by leaching have been the focus of much research interest. One reason is their potential commercial value, which could be considerable. Another reason is to discover these components to try to predict possible chemical reactions during processing. Present interest is being directed toward discovering ways to avoid any harmful effects on the environment due to processing of the shale (Desborough, Pitman, and Huffman, 1974). QUALITY OF THE RESOURCE AND ECONONIC CONSIDERATIONS . It is difficult to assess the total amount of the oil shale resource, but it is generally estimated to be vast. The Green River Formation is estimated to contain more than 3 trillion barrels of oil-equivalent in-place. That portion of the resources considered to be commercially e~?loitable is estimated to contain 600 billion barrels in 25 gpt shales occurring in strata 10 or more feet thick. Appro~imately 80 percent of the exploitable oil shale resources are located in the Piceance Creek Basin, 15 percent in Utah's Uinta Basin, and 5 percent in southwestern Wyoming (Prien, 1973). In Colorado, continuous oil shale sections 15 to 2,000 feet thick, and averaging at least 15 gpt, underlie 1,380 square miles. These sections contain richer portions averaging 25 gpt that represent 400 billion barrels of oil. Sections averaging 25 gpt in Utah are 15 to 150 feet thick and represent 120 billion barrels of oil in-place. Those in Wyoming are 15 to 80 feet thick and represent 12 billion barrels of oil (Thorne et al., 1964). These resources represent. a significant amount of oil for the United States (Table C.l) if an economically feasible way to exploit them is developed. There are a myriad of potential by-product opportunities in shale oil production, anyone of which might improve the economic feasibility of mining. Besides the by-products typical of the petroleum and petro- chemical industry, there are many other possible materials which could result, such as sulfur and ammonia. Oil shale, which does burn, could be used to produce low-Btu gas by standard gasification processes (Schramm, 1970). Other products derived from the associated inorganic minerals nahcolite and dawsonite have been mentioned. Any of these products would help increase the economic viability of the oil shale industrf. . C-9