West Virginia Water Research Institute

On January 2, our own Eliza Siefert, Dave Hoffman, and Nate DePriest will be speaking about our critical materials program. Acid mine drainage goes into a treatment facility, critical materials are recovered, and clean water comes out. Learn more about the science behind this innovative process in the next session of our virtual seminar series! https://lnkd.in/eR8JTkqa #acidminedrainage #criticalmaterials #waterrestoration West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection

Exciting advancements are underway as the Water Research Institute at West Virginia University (WVWRI) expands a transformative program to extract critical materials from acid mine drainage (AMD), supported by a new, $5 million, three-year U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant. The funding, Production of Individually Separated Rare Earth Metals, will benefit the economy, national security, and the environment. Rare earth elements (REE) and critical materials (CM) such as cobalt, nickel, and lithium can be found in AMD. In 2016, the research team, led by WVWRI Director Dr. Paul Ziemkiewicz, pioneered a technique that economically recovers these valuable metals and removes contaminants from AMD, resulting in clean water. Not only will this be a boon for the environment; it will also create economic and social benefits for the surrounding communities. “AMD is one of the most harmful stream pollutants and is responsible for over 6,000 miles of stream impairment in West Virginia and Pennsylvania alone. AMD treatment is nothing new, but the project team has developed processes that will incentivize AMD treatment through the co-production of REE and CM,” said Ziemkiewicz. Read more at https://lnkd.in/eHyRnFxS #rareearthelements #waterremediation #acidminedrainage U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection

📣 Have you registered for our winter webinar series yet? The first session is this Thursday at 10 AM and spotlights projects that received USGS funding. Spread the word! Register now at https://lnkd.in/eR8JTkqa #USGS #usgsfunding #wvu U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)

We are gearing up for our dual WVWRI and 3RQ webinar series! Join us the first and third Thursday of the month this winter to hear about current water research and remediation projects. Each session includes a Q&A for audience inquiries. Register to get the Zoom link to attend any occurrence of either series at https://lnkd.in/euuJjCmK. #wvwater #waterrestoration #wvu

The drought of 2024, has marked the driest 18-month period since 1987 in West Virginia. Check out the StoryMap below to understand the implications of drought on our Monongahela River Basin. https://lnkd.in/e3b_UPTk

We're #hiring a new Critical Materials Lab Tech in Morgantown, West Virginia. Apply today or share this post with your network.

WVWRI is still accepting applications for a Critical Materials Lab Tech. This role plays a pivotal part in advancing the ongoing exploration of rare earth elements (REE) and critical materials (CM) from non-traditional sources, notably acid mine drainage. Please apply through this link: https://lnkd.in/e7dSXTYV

We're #hiring a new Critical Materials Lab Tech in Morgantown, West Virginia. Apply today or share this post with your network.

Join Our Team! We are currently accepting applications for a Water Remediation Specialist. This position will serve a pivotal role in implementing acid mine drainage remediation projects and assisting with the coordination, outreach, and water quality data collection for multiple projects. Please apply through this link: https://lnkd.in/ee-AHc9i

Down a long gravel road, tucked into the hills in West Virginia, is a low-slung building where researchers are extracting essential elements from an old coal mine that they hope will strengthen the nation’s energy future. They aren’t mining the coal that powered the steel mills and locomotives that helped industrialize America — and that is blamed for contributing to global warming. Rather, researchers are finding that groundwater pouring out of this and other abandoned coal mines contains the rare earth elements and other valuable metals that are vital to making everything from electric vehicle motors to rechargeable batteries to fighter jets smaller, lighter or more powerful. The pilot project run by West Virginia University is now part of an intensifying worldwide race to develop a secure supply of the valuable metals and, with more federal funding, it could grow to a commercial scale enterprise. “The ultimate irony is that the stuff that has created climate change is now a solution, if we’re smart about it,” said John Quigley, a senior fellow at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. The technology that has been piloted at this facility in West Virginia could also pioneer a way to clean up vast amounts of coal mine drainage that poisons waterways across Appalachia. The project is one of the leading efforts by the federal government as it injects more money than ever into recovering rare earth elements to expand renewable energies and fight climate change by reducing planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions. Continue reading the article at https://lnkd.in/eUKqjfwN. #RareEarthElements #WestVirginia