Pieces are starting to come together for an outdoor display at the City of Carlsbad’s Potash Park, located across from the Pecos River Village Conference Center off of Muscatel Avenue. Last week, a Loader, Powder Wagon and Floatation Cell, all donated by Mosaic Potash, were carefully placed by Mondale LLC on top concrete pads within the park.
Potash Park organizer Chair Willi Jung said the Loader weighs around 9 ½ tons and was used to collect potash ore and then put it onto a transport car. The Powder Wagon was used for filling holes with explosives in the underground, while the Floatation Cell is used to separate potash from salt in the underground. All three pieces of equipment were brought up from Mosaic’s #5 shaft, east of town. A company named Watchdog handled the sandblasting and painting.
In a few months, a Rescue Hoist donated by Intrepid Potash will be placed within a nearby fenced-in area directly off of Muscatel.
“Potash is and always will be the heart and soul of this community,” said Carlsbad Mayor Dale Janway. “This beautiful park celebrating our history is coming together, thanks to the hard work of Willi Jung and the committee members and the generosity of Intrepid and Mosaic.”
Jung has led a grassroots effort to establish “Potash Park” in Carlsbad as a way of celebrating Carlsbad’s rich legacy as a global leader in potash production. Potash, used in fertilizer and for a myriad of other purposes, was first discovered near Carlsbad in 1925. The discovery brought Carlsbad to life by bringing numerous jobs to the area, up through the present day.