Economic evaluation of oil shale and tar sands resources located in the state of Utah: Phase 1

Managing public lands for maximum social benefit is becoming an increasingly complex task. The growing need for domestically produced mineral raw materials and energy, and the conflicting interests over the use of public lands, have added new dimensions to the management issues. This report covers the first phase of a longterm program initiated by the Division of State Lands to improve their capability to evaluate the tar sand and oil shale resources in Utah. The scope of this phase of the study was limited to the examination and analysis of existing information and to the development models for data processing and resource evaluation. The study has been effective in identifying problem areas and demonstrating the potential value of the proposed systems for the management of state lands. The more important findings and conclusions are summarized below.