AMD Pollution (IMAGE) West Virginia University Caption Acid mine drainage is a major pollutant for West Virginia's waters. The West Virginia Water Research Institute at WVU is looking at ways to extract rare earth elements from the sludge with the recent aid of $5 million from the US Department of Energy. Credit Raymond Thompson Jr./West Virginia University Usage Restrictions None License Licensed content Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.