MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- A West Virginia University researcher is examining potential sources of pollution that could result from natural gas drilling.

The Morgantown school says that assistant professor Shikha Sharma has received $265,000 from the National Science Foundation to support the Stable Isotope Research Laboratory.

Officials say the lab advances research and training in earth sciences with a primary focus on energy and environmental topics.

The grant will fund the purchase of new equipment to analyze compounds, including dissolved natural gases.

The research could help find areas where gas is likely to be more abundant and help identify sources of gas and pollutants entering groundwater and streams.