"US Coal Mines Unearth Rare Earth Elements for Green Energy"

New research led by the University of Utah has found elevated levels of rare earth elements (REEs) in coal-adjacent formations in Utah and Colorado, suggesting that active coal mines could also serve as sources for these critical minerals essential for renewable energy and high-tech applications. This discovery, part of the DOE-funded CORE-CM project, could potentially provide a secondary resource stream for coal mines, aiding the transition to green energy. The study highlights the need for further research to determine the volume of REEs present and the economic viability of mining them.