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CHAPTERONE Purpose and Need , Historically, sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate have been manufactured synthetically using the Solvay process. This process uses salt, ammonia, cazbon dioxide, and limestone. The limestone is heated to produce lime and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide is dissolved in the other components, and the result is a sodium bicarbonate precipitate. The sodium bicazbonate is heated and dried to form sodium carbonate (Lewis 1992). The relatively large energy requirements and the adverse environmental effects of the Solvay process have c.3used the industry to shift toward processing natural deposits (Lewis 1992). Processing of natural sodium bicarbonate deposits involves simple, known processes and results in less by-product. The United States is a world leader in soda ash production due to the natural trona (sodium sesquicazbonate) deposits in the Green River Basin in Wyoming, which provide ever 90 percent of the United States' supply and approximately 25 percent of the world's supply of soda ash. Trona ore is removed from several subsurface beds via a method similaz to longwall coal mining. Oil shale, mudstone, and claystone are also included in the ore. The trona is dissolved from the ore and processed further. The nonsoluble tailings (oil shale, mudstone, and claystone), which comprise approximately 12 percent of the ore, aze disposed of in surface reservoirs or in portions of the underground mine (Scriven 1997). American Soda proposes to mine nahcolite by a solution mining process. The process is designed to selectively remove nahcolite from the subsurface in solution form. Because no ore would be mined, there would be no tailings. Water used as the dissolution medium would be recycled. The international markets for soda ash and sodium bicarbonate aze currently strong with demand growing steadily over the last 25 years. Since most of the growth in demand for :soda ash is occurring overseas, American Soda anticipates that a large portion of its products would be exported to foreign countries, primarily in Asia, but also in Latin America and Europe. Implementation of the proposed project would enable American Soda to cost-effectively produce important sodium minerals for a growing world market in an energy efficient maruter. The purpose of this EIS is to inform the public and decision-makers and to provide a full and fair disclosure of significant environmental effects of the Proposed Action and alternatives. 1.3 ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS PROCESS The BLM is required by NEPA and Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) directives to analyze the potential effects on the environment from proposed actions involving federal lands and leases (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508). The BLM is further required to review and act on Applications for Permit to Drill (APDs) per the regulations implementing the Mitteral Leasing Act of 1920, and to issue rights-of--way (ROWS) across federal lands under Title'/ of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA). The ROW grants permission to construct and operate lineaz transportation facilities such as roads and pipelines. The BLM would also ensure that any project activities occurring within the White River Resource Area are in conformance with the White River Record of Decision (ROD) and Approved Resource Management Plan (RMP) (BLM 1997). One of the objectives in the RMP states: "Facilitate the orderly and environmentally sound development of sodium resources occurring on public lands." 1-2