Oklahoma leads the nation in gypsum mining

BOUSE JUNCTION — The next time you bite down into a Twinkie, know there is a good chance part of it was mined out of a mesa south of Little Sahara State Park.

The same goes for the beer you may order at Bricktown or the loaf of bread you buy at the grocery store.

Oklahoma not only leads the nation in gypsum mining, but gypsum in Oklahoma is so pure that it is used as a calcium additive for foods we take for granted and in common medicines.

“Our mine near Bouse Junction and the USG mine at Southard have food-grade gypsum which is used in foods like Twinkies, bread, micro-breweries and such as an additive,” says Jim Hill, vice president of marketing for Harrison Gypsum. “The gypsum at those two sites is close to being 90 percent pure gypsum.”

Hill said nearly 8 percent of the gypsum his firm mines is of food grade. However, the bulk of what is mined goes to support the energy industry — such as for road-base material and oil rig platforms.

Varied uses

Stan Krukowski, with the Oklahoma Geological Survey based at the University of Oklahoma, said the long line of dump trucks hauling gypsum rock from the Harrison mine at Bouse Junction into Mooreland could easily be seen as a long line of trucks filled with Twinkies.

“You have food-grade gypsum along with other grades of gypsum. It is not just used for wallboard, you know,” Krukowski said. “Gypsum is also used in cement. It retards the cement from forming up, giving the tradesman time to work with it before it hardens.”

More than 5 million tons of gypsum is mined in Oklahoma annually involving 22 companies strung out across seven western counties.

Major County is the leading state source of gypsum, producing more that 1.7 million tons a year.

Figures from the U.S. Geological Survey show Oklahoma leading the nation in gypsum mining and in gypsum food additives.

Energy boom impact

Hill agrees with the figures indicating Oklahoma has been able to position itself as the country’s No. 1 source for gypsum due to the oil boom and infrastructure needs that gypsum provides that industry.

Gypsum is used by the oil and gas industry as a road pavement so dirt roads won’t break down as heavy equipment goes over them.

It is used at oil platforms as a ground covering before the structure is set up.

“Our mining operations pretty much follows the rig count,” Hill says.

Oklahoma gypsum is still used for wallboard products as seen by the operations of three wallboard manufacturing plants in the state operated by United States Gypsum, Georgia-Pacific, and American Gypsum.

Plentiful in state

Although the state sees tons of gypsum taken out of the ground each year and local residents find entire mesas shaved down, Krukowski said there is no concern that Oklahoma is running out of gypsum.

“We have lots of gypsum close to the surface,” he said.

Oklahoma’s immense gypsum deposits are testimony to the various times oceans have covered the state, leaving behind gypsum deposits.