What is mined under the Detroit area? The amount of salt used fluctuates depending on the winter. I'm on a journey across the USA to visit all 22 Paris' - and points in between. YouTubes privacy policy is available here and YouTubes terms of service is available here. Both are part of the PLSS measurement system but have different uses. All rights reserved. sends the wall of salt crumbling down. Length, in feet, of the original mineshaft. It has operated since 1959 and was acquired by Compass Minerals in 1990. Cookie Settings/Do Not Sell My Personal Information. "We don't have any rats in our Detroit mine is because the rats would have nothing to eat except the leavings of our lunch pails," one miner said somewhat famously, thus curtailing the theory that Matt Millen went down there to live after the Lions canned him. But there is another part of the city far fewer people seem to be aware of, and it lies directly underneath their feet. How big is the salt mine under Lake Michigan? Source: Detroit Free Press Michigans only salt mine is/was operated by International Salt Company. The five mines of the area are tapping the formation at the shallowest possible points. Keep updated on the latest news and information. 245 Regent StreetGoderich, Ontario N7A-3Y5519.524.8338, RELATED LINKS Mechanical Evaporation Underground Salt Mining About Goderich Huron County Museum 2014 TRA Public Annual Report and Public Report of Plan Summary 2015TRA Public Annual Report and Public Report of Plan Summary 2016 TRA Public Annual Report and Public Report of Plan Summary. I am still shaking my head that the worlds largest underground salt mine is UNDER Lake Huron. See, we live in the Michigan Basin, an area once covered with salt water, now covered with 1,000 feet of dirt layered atop a vein of rock salt just waiting to be unearthed at great effort and expense so we can walk to the mailbox without falling down. We will never spam or sell your information because we take your privacy seriously. Search for owners by first name, last name, company, location, etc. Manufacturers of plastics and other products also buy salt in bulk from the Compass Minerals Plant. The room and pillar method of mining is employed in all salt mines Groups and transportation officials have been working to educate communities on the harmful effects of road salt,which can accelerate the formation of algal blooms in waterways. For years it produced tons of rock salt daily, most of which is used for ice Since 1959, the Fairport Harbor Morton Salt Mine has been mining for rock salt, most commonly used to melt snow and ice on road. Proudly created with Wix.com. Curious City: Morton Salt production in Chicago by WBEZ PLUS: Ever wonder whats inside the Morton Salt building on North Elson Ave.? Salt is now plentiful, but until the Industrial Revolution, it was difficult to come by, and salt was often mined by slaves or prisoners. the International Salt Company assumed control of Michigans only underground salt AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps. Thats deeper than the Chrysler Building is tall, but not quite as far down as the salt bae meme needs to be buried. 1 of 2. The salt mine was discovered in 1866 by Sam Platt during a search for oil. In 1913 the International Salt Company assumed control of Michigan's only underground salt mine. Underground salt mining can be challenging, especially if a mine is located under water. Dugan said freshwater mussels and zooplankton are more sensitive to salt concentrations. Some of the salt is trucked to the Compass Minerals plant less than 4 kilometers away, to be packaged for distribution and sale at retailers in North America. Sign up now! For example, under Michigan the formation varies from All Rights Reserved. control. The mine itself is a relatively clean and spacious place to work, as far as mines go. Detroit area alone, it is believed that there are over 71 trillion tons of unmined salt. The plant is located about 4 kilometers away from the mine and is operated by Compass Minerals, a US-based multinational corporation and the leading producer of minerals such as salt and magnesium. Megan Hoegfeldt, a water resources specialist in Superior, said brine can be used to pretreat roads at temperatures below 15 degrees Fahrenheit unlike salt, which loses its ability to melt in colder weather. Your email address will not be published. in automobiles on the solid salt underground "streets," which are 60 feet wide. Researchers examined past and current water data on the amount of salt flowing into the lake from 234 rivers and streams, according to Hilary Dugan, the study's lead author and assistant professor for the Center for Limnology at UW-Madison. Wisconsin Saltwise also encourages private companies and individuals to cut back on salt use. water softening snow and ice removal from roads and highways. For questions or comments, contact WPRs Audience Services at 1-800-747-7444, email listener@wpr.org or use our Listener Feedback form. Offer subject to change without notice. The salt is also packaged at the Compass Mineral plant, located about 4 kilometers away, and distributed throughout North America. Life expectancy for the miners was low. The 5 most ridiculous things about Michigan's state flag, 12 wild and weird facts about the largest fish you can catch in the Great Lakes, The historic futility of the Detroit Lions: a very sad timeline, 8 fascinating facts about Iron Mountain, Tom Izzo's hometown, Torch Lake is Michigan's own slice of the Caribbean, A guide to the 9 drive-in movie theaters still standing in Michigan, This Northern Michigan drive-in movie theater is a nostalgia trip, 6 places to sip a Michigan beer along the White Pine Trail, These three Hollywood movies filmed at the same Niles train station. One Curious City question prompted us to find out. Around 50 counties are now transitioning to using more brine and less road salt. Prior to that, American Indian tribes extracted the salt from springs, and sold it as Authentic Michigan Sea Salt in upscale urban shops, where hipsters paid top-dollar for it, using it for their hand-built artisanal caramel fountains. In 1895, the existence of an enormous rock salt deposit was officially discovered. Oil drillers accidentally discovered the deposit in the 1860's. It stretches over 1.5 miles wide, 2 miles long, and covers an area of 2.7 million squares miles. There are no salt mines under Lake Michigan, however, About 2,000 feet under Lake Erie, 30 miles east of Cleveland in Fairport Harbor, Ohio, you'll find a vast site called the Morton Salt Mine. fatality. will attain a maximum of 70%. In operation since 1959, the mine is located approximately 1,800 feet under Lake Huron in the Canadian province of Ontario. Its no secret that Detroit has been hit very hard by the recession. the movement of salt in Canada from eastern Saskatchewan Province to western Quebec dust, and the presence of sound roof and ribs as well as comfortable temperatures of 55 The Sifto Salt Mine produces over 7 million tons of rock salt annually, which is enough to meet the demand in the Great Lakes region. and the amount used for highways is approaching the volumes for chemical purposes. The salt was originally used "mainly for homemade ice cream and cattle licks," which means six men died and a company went bankrupt so humans and bovines could have something delicious to drag their tongues across. The Detroit salt mine is a salt mine located 1,100 ft (340 m) below Detroit, Michigan. Six men were killed during the dig, and the Detroit Salt and Manufacturing Company was bankrupted in the process. Offer available only in the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). In the beginning, the leather and food industries were the primary customers. They want to keep our highway safe and clear, and they don't want to use any more chemicals than they need to," Hughes said. State University Here are the Detroit salt mines, by the (really, really big)numbers. is crushed into a form that is "road ready". The All rights reserved (About Us). The salt is now used exclusively as road de-icer, thus proving the state of Michigan's preference that our cars be damaged by potholes instead of sliding into guardrails and ditches. Levels of roughly 250 milligrams per liter have been known to affect the taste of drinking water and harm freshwater organisms. Today, the salt from this mine is used exclusively as road salt. Curious City: Morton Salt production in Chicago from WBEZ on Vimeo. Rooms from 50 to 60 feet wide are driven out and blocks of salt of the same Manufacturers of plastics and other products also buy salt in bulk from the Compass Minerals Plant. Evidently it is the Cargill mine that is the worlds largest. Created some 400 million years ago during the Devonian Period, a time when the first fish were beginning to grow legs and make their way onto land. This one is a small storage shed of salt for the Meridian Detroit had a very large salt mine that was basically an underground industry underneath their city. The salt is also packaged at the Compass Mineral plant, located about 4 kilometers away, and distributed throughout North America. Then holes are drilled in the wall from The shaft is considered one of the great engineering accomplishments in Michigan history, but dont say that too loud, because it makes the Mackinac Bridge feel insecure. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions 2023 worldatlas.com. Michigan, Ohio, and Ontario. personal use. This is a partial list of current and defunct mines in Michigan. . Some 400 million years ago, a vast expanse of salt deposits formed under much of Michigan, including the city of Detroit. It stretches over 1.5 miles wide, 2 miles long, and covers an area of 2.7 million squares miles. A sealed test tube said to hold Thomas Edison's dying breath was given to the inventor's friend and mentee, Henry Ford. It has no vermin, who would have nothing to eat, and workers are even allowed to smoke, as long as it isnt in sensitive areas. 2023 by Wisconsin Public Radio, a service of the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. [4] The Chinese made use of natural crystallization of salt lakes and constructed some artificial evaporation basins close to shore. Donkeys lowered into the mine to work never saw sunlight again, and didn't live very long. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The rooms vary in width from 30 to 60 ft and in height Curious City 10 years ago 2,728 1 1 1,474 965 Follow Curious City and others on SoundCloud. [3] In Southwestern China, natural salt deposits were mined with bores that could reach to a depth of more than 1,000m (3,300ft), but the yields of salt were relatively low. As the water evaporated it left behind large deposits of . Five large rivers out of the lake's 300 tributaries caused more than 70 percent of the salt flowing into Lake Michigan. -- Atlas Obscura's Guide to the World's Salty Wonders. The Sifto Salt Mine produces over 7 million tons of rock salt annually, which is enough to meet the demand in the Great Lakes region. Years that have passed since the salt was discovered. "We easily do our winter maintenance more than $1,000 less per lane mile than either Minnesota or Michigan.". This empty Detroit high school was too expensive to maintain or destroy. Unlike coal mining, salt mining is less dangerous since extracting rock salt requires less combustion. It was booming from the early 1920s up until 1983, when it was forced to close due to the falling salt prices. The economy of salt mining dried up like a 400 million-year-old ocean, prompting the company at the time, International Salt, to say, Na. Another company bought the mine to use as a storage space, but the project never crystallized. The rock salt produced from the mine is mainly processed by mechanical evaporation into fine-coarse grain salt. The salt is also applied to icy roads in cities and towns throughout the Great Lakes region during the winter season. The Generally speaking, the absence of gas, water, excessive The Diggings is a resource for locating where mining claims are and have been. Before the advent of the modern internal combustion engine and earth-moving equipment, mining salt was one of the most expensive and dangerous of operations because of rapid dehydration caused by constant contact with the salt (both in the mine passages and scattered in the air as salt dust) and of other problems caused by accidental excessive sodium intake. undisturbed by faults or other forms of sharp ground movements. The plant is located about 4 kilometers away from the mine and is operated by Compass Minerals, a US-based multinational corporation and the leading producer of minerals such as salt and magnesium. economical mining, It was the result of ancient oceans pouring into a huge basin, evaporating, and leaving huge amounts of salt behind in the process. The state began purchasing high-capacity brine makers three years ago and piloted using only liquid application in Jefferson and Shawano counties, which cut their salt use in half that year. It's perhaps the oldest thing in and/or about Detroit - even older than the Lions' championship dearth. (1964). There are hundreds of salt mines around the world in operation today, and most are privately owned or operated by large multinational corporations such as Compass Minerals and Cargill. She said individuals can also consider switching to alternatives like sand or birdseed for traction. Today it is closed. Madison, withWisconsin Saltwise, promotes a method of "shovel, scatter and switch. Name County Years Material Coordinates Adventure mine: . Mining Which means the salt mines are in Detroit just like Kid Rock and Insane Clown Posse are from Detroit.. by 3) The availability of low cost water transportation on the Great Lakes which facilitates Tours of the mine currently being offered. Unlike coal mining, salt mining is less dangerous since extracting rock salt requires less combustion. Using mechanical evaporation, the plant produces high-purity, fine- and coarse-grained salt products in packages and in bulk for commercial, agricultural and industrial applications. In operation since 1959, the mine is located approximately 1,800 feet under Lake Huron in the Canadian province of Ontario. width are left for roof support. The greatest rock salt production in the U. S. is obtained from the vertical distance below the surface. Yes! In the mine, the temperature is between 56 and 60 degrees in all season. Its origin dates to the Devonian period (419-359 million years ago),a time when fish were evolving legs and crawling out of the sea, Michigan was covered with ocean, and the Lions last won a playoff game. [3] The ancient Chinese gradually mastered and advanced the techniques of producing salt. Where Is The World's Largest Underground Lake. Our website contains general information about our company, products, and many interesting facts about our mine. Required fields are marked *. Therefore, usually a minimum of 1 ft of salt is left on the floor, while 4 to 6 feet of As a geological entity, this salt deposit is older even than the dinosaurs. 2023 by Going Places. One 12-ounce mug of salt is enough for a 20-foot driveway.". We depend on ad revenue to craft and curate stories about the worlds hidden wonders. The mines were owned and operated by The Detroit Salt and Manufacturing Company. Once part of an ancient international harbor, it's now an all-you-can-eat shrimp buffet for flamingos and other water birds. Years the salt mine was abandoned, from 1983-1998. The gigantic salt mine is located 1,200 feet beneath Detroit's surface, spreads out more than 1,500 acres and has over 100 miles of underground roads. But like much of Michigans mineral wealth, only a fraction of this The image Next, they drill holes for explosives, which allows them to blast out some 900 tons of salt in less than three seconds. The top of the Salina Group of the Eastern Salt Basin varies in its from C.M. According to the Detroit Salt Company, 400 million years ago, ocean water flooded into a large basin, an area known as the Michigan Basin. It has operated since 1959 and was acquired by Compass Minerals in 1990. Copy. 24 delicious places to pay homage to the most valuable rock in history. Discover mining activity in your area and find new regions of opportunity. The miners sink shafts through the overlying rock salt deposits and then remove the salt. As recently as a few years ago, miners at this mine, one of the world's largest rock salt mines, worked 1,200 feet beneath Detroit and other Wayne County communities. Detroit is known for many things: the auto industry, hockey, and Motown. 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