West Virginia university pilots rare-earth extraction from coal-mine runoff

In the Appalachian area of West Virginia, a pilot facility at the decommissioned Mount Storm coal mine captures acidic, metal-rich drainage and runs it through a series of treatment pools to strip out heavy rare earth elements. The system, overseen by West Virginia University’s Rare Earth Elements Initiative, generates roughly four tons of rare-earth oxides each year, about 45 % of which are heavy elements prized for high-performance magnets.

While the output represents a modest fraction of national needs, university engineers suggest scaling to 300 metric tons could supply several percent of global demand for metals such as terbium and dysprosium. Experts note the project also mitigates environmental harm by cleaning the water before release. Partnerships with firms like REalloys aim to develop downstream processing, though the United States still lacks extensive refining capacity. The initiative is viewed as a step toward reducing reliance on foreign rare-earth supplies, particularly from China.