Editing Potash (section)

=== 20th century industrialization ===
[[File:International Exchange of Potash in 1937 - DPLA - 6e2d669a051158fe7afe1fc031988d4f.jpg|thumb|right|Global imports/exports of potash in 1937]]
The wood-ash industry declined in the late 19th century when large-scale production of [[:Category:Potassium minerals|potash from mineral]] salts was established in [[Germany]]. In the early 20th century, the potash industry was dominated by a cartel in which Germany had the dominant role.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=147}} [[World War I|WWI]] saw a brief resurgence of American asheries, with their product typically consisting of 66% hydroxide, 17% carbonate, 16% sulfate and other impurities.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bateman |first=Ernest |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ksNWAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA15 |title=Wood Ashes and Production of Potash |date=1919 |publisher=U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory |language=en}}</ref> Later in the century, the cartel ended as new potash producers emerged in the USSR and Canada.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=147}}

In 1943, potash was discovered in [[Saskatchewan]], Canada, during oil drilling. Active exploration began in 1951. In 1958, the Potash Company of America became the first potash producer in Canada with the commissioning of an underground potash mine at [[Patience Lake]].<ref name="ce" /> As numerous potash producers in Canada developed, the Saskatchewan government became increasingly involved in the industry, leading to the creation of [[Canpotex]] in the 1970s.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=147}} 

[[File:Canadianpotashmine.jpg|thumbnail|A postcard of the Kalium Chemicals plant in [[Belle Plaine, Saskatchewan]]]]
In 1964 the Canadian company Kalium Chemicals established the first potash mine using the solution process. The discovery was made during oil reserve exploration. The mine was developed near Regina, Saskatchewan. The mine reached depths greater than 1500 meters. It is now the Mosaic Corporation's Belle Plaine unit.

The USSR's potash production had largely been for domestic use and use in the [[Council for Mutual Economic Assistance]] countries.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=147}} After the [[Dissolution of the Soviet Union|dissolution of the USSR]], Russian and [[Mining in Belarus|Belarusian]] potash producers entered into direct competition with producers elsewhere in the world for the first time.<ref name=":02" />{{Rp|page=147}}

In the beginning of the 20th century, potash deposits were found in the [[Dallol, Ethiopia|Dallol Depression]] in the Musely and Crescent localities near the Ethiopean-[[Eritrea]]n border. The estimated reserves in Musely and Crescent are 173 and 12&nbsp;million tonnes respectively. The latter is particularly suitable for surface mining. It was explored in the 1960s but the works stopped due to flooding in 1967. Attempts to continue mining in the 1990s were halted by the [[Eritrean–Ethiopian War]] and have not resumed as of 2009.<ref name="industrialization1">{{cite news |title=Minerals for Agricultural Industrialization |publisher=Ministry of Mines and Energy of Ethiopia |url=http://www.mome.gov.et/industrial.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720153154/http://www.mome.gov.et/industrial.html |archive-date=2011-07-20}}</ref>[[Image:Potash evaporation ponds near Moab, UT, May 2013.jpg|thumb|Potash evaporation ponds at the [[Intrepid Potash]] mine near [[Moab, Utah]]]]