Buried fortune: US finds $8.4 billion in rare earths sitting in coal ash landfills

A study estimates that U.S. coal ash contains 11 million tons of rare earth elements.

Updated: Mar 17, 2025

For years, the United States has depended on imports of rare earth elements, the critical materials found in everything from smartphones to renewable energy technologies.

But in a surprising twist, researchers from The University of Texas at Austin have discovered that a massive domestic supply has been sitting right under our noses all along.

Trapped within the country’s coal ash deposits lies a staggering $8.4 billion worth of these essential elements, a finding that could significantly reduce dependence on imports and reshape America’s approach to sourcing critical minerals.

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