What is it about?
The Salmon River is among the most remote and protected watersheds in North America. Its pristine wilderness qualities were featured in the opening chapter of John McPhee’s non-fiction classic, Coming into the Country. In 2019, the gin-clear waters of the Salmon turned orange and have remained turbid and discolored since. The sudden degradation of the Salmon and many other formerly clear streams in the region is thought to reflect sulfide mineral weathering following permafrost thaw. Here, we show the Salmon mainstem and most of its tributaries have metal concentrations deemed toxic to aquatic life.
Featured Image
Photo by Patrick Hendry on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Our findings might help to explain a recent crash in chum salmon returns, which are an important commercial and subsistence resource in an economically challenged region.
Perspectives
Our research highlights a dramatic and unexpected consequence of climate change in one of the most remote wilderness areas on Earth. It is a stark example of how we as humans can indirectly degrade the environment through our fossil fuel emissions.
Patrick Sullivan
University of Alaska Anchorage
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Wild, scenic, and toxic: Recent degradation of an iconic Arctic watershed with permafrost thaw, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, September 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2425644122.
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