What are the natural resources in South Dakota?
Natural resources utilized in economic activity can include the following: Manganese was once mined from a dark unvegetated band of Pierre shale containing iron and manganese-iron oxide/carbonate nodules. Nodules can also be weathered out of the shale. Mining ceased when it was not economical. Concretions of this type form today in very deep marine environments. Multicolored scoria is quarried as an aggregate for unpaved road surfaces in northwestern South Dakota. However, this lightweight material quickly breaks down over time. Many oil and gas wells were drilled in the last one-hundred years, but only a few are still active today. Active oil wells are located in Harding and northern Butte counties with a few in Custer, Fall River, and Dewey counties. Some of these wells are nearly 3,000m deep. Many wells drilled in the Pierre shale in central South Dakota have yielded low amounts of natural gas, but its supply is not commercially viable. One such well fuels the eternal flame on the S
