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INTRODUCTION General Chemical Group is a diversified supplier of inorganic chemicals and manufactured goods. We own and operate two soda ash manufacturing facilities in North America. Our natural soda ash manufacturing facility in Green River, Wyoming mechanically mines deposits of trona, operates with a nameplate capacity of 2.SMM tons per yeaz and has been in operation since 1967. Our manufacturing facility in Amherstburg, Ontario produces soda ash through the synthetic Solvay process and has been in operation since 1918. To support the operations in Amherstburg, we solution mine halite. We have been successfully solution m;n;ng, in an environmentally safe manner, since 1918 and are considered one of the pioneers in the industry. Founded in 1846, Church & Dwight Co., Inc. is the world's leading producer of Sodium Bicarbonate, populazly known as baking soda, a natural product which cleans, deodorizes, leavens and buffers. The company specializes in developing uses for sodium bicarbonate and related products which are packaged and sold, primarily under the Arm and Hammer Trademark®, through grocery stores, drugstores and mass merchandisers, and to industrial customers and distributors. As a leading producer in Sodium Bicarbonate, Church & Dwight is the largest non-glass consumer of Soda Ash in the world. A viable, new source of soda ash that serves to strengthen the U.S. mazket position is in their best interests. As a responsible chemical manufacturer and good corporate citizen, Church & Dwight has a commercial interest in making sure that American Soda is able to meet the high environmental standards it holds all its suppliers to. The permitting process which American Soda has undertaken is an important first step. This process, which was established by the Federal, state and local governments to ensure responsible conduct by private industry and individuals, must proceed in the thoughtful and serious manner which its authors intended. The permitting process should never be moved ahead based on perceived economic benefits. The protection of scarce resources and environmental safety must be balanced with economic benefits. Where data is inadequate or information is missing, we must conduct the proper due diligence to find the facts and azrive at logical, unbiased conclusions. The consequences of failure and the potential impacts to the environment are too great a risk. With this in mind, we have prepazed the following public comments: