Alaska is known for its natural beauty and stunning landscapes teeming with vast wilderness and abundant wildlife.
But staining the landscape is a strange phenomenon: Dozens of the most remote rivers and streams in the Land of the Midnight Sun are turning from clear blue to cloudy orange. New research has found that the discoloration could be from the exposure of minerals from thawing permafrost.
“The more we flew around, we started noticing more and more orange rivers and streams,” said Jon O’Donnell, lead author of the study and an ecologist with the National Park Service (NPS)’s Arctic Inventory and Monitoring Network, in a press release from University of California, Davis (UC Davis). “There are certain sites that look almost like a milky orange juice. Those orange streams can be problematic both in terms of being toxic but might also prevent migration of fish to spawning areas.”
For the first time, researchers have sampled and documented some of these degraded waterways, including 75 locations across part of the Brooks Range in northern Alaska.
The researchers said that, as the climate continues to be affected by global heating, these contaminated rivers and streams could seriously impact fisheries and drinking water in Arctic watersheds.
“When the permafrost thaw, sulfide mineral deposits are exposed to groundwater and chemical weathering processes. Through this process, acid, iron and trace metals are released to streams and rivers. Many of these trace metals (such as copper, cadmium, arsenic, and others) are considered toxic for drinking water or for aquatic life if they exceed certain thresholds. We are actively working to determine which metals may exceed thresholds for aquatic life determine[d] by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,” O’Donnell told EcoWatch in an email.
O’Donnell first became aware of the problem in 2018 while visiting a river that looked rusty but had been clear a year earlier. O’Donnell compiled a list of locations and took water samples when possible. The region is so remote that the rivers and streams are usually only accessible by helicopter.
“The stained rivers are so big we can see them from space,” said Brett Poulin, one of the study’s primary investigators and a UC Davis assistant environmental toxicology professor, in the press release. “These have to be stained a lot to pick them up from space.”
Poulin is a water chemistry expert and thought the staining appeared similar to when water becomes contaminated by acid mine drainage, but there aren’t any mines near any of the degraded rivers.
“Rusting rivers tend to be more acidic and more turbid (due to iron particles). Evidence from the lower 48 has shown that migratory fish like salmon may not pass through river reaches affected by acid mine drainage. Our observations from the Arctic are similar to acid mine drainage, except there are no mines in the affected watersheds. The rivers are draining remote wilderness areas,” O’Donnell told EcoWatch.
One theory is that, as Earth’s climate has warmed, the thawing of frozen permafrost has exposed its minerals to water and oxygen, releasing acid and metals.
“Chemistry tells us minerals are weathering,” Poulin said in the press release. “Understanding what’s in the water is a fingerprint as to what occurred.”
The affected rivers are located on federal lands — including Kobuk Valley and Gates of the Arctic National Parks — managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Land Management and NPS.
“The Arctic is warming four times faster than the Earth as a whole. Model projections predict continued warming in the coming decades. As the climate warms, permafrost will continue to thaw, exposing previously frozen soils and rocks to chemical weathering. We are working to determine which watersheds in the Brooks Range will be vulnerable to rusting in the future. Not all rivers will turn orange. There needs to be sulfide minerals, such as pyrite, to drive the mobilization of trace metals, sulfate, iron, and acid into the streams,” O’Donnell told EcoWatch.
The river and stream-staining minerals can affect the health of fish and, in turn, the humans who consume them.
“Rusting rivers represent a loss of habitat for fish. Our observations showed a complete loss of resident fish from a stream that changed from clear to orange. Further, metals might accumulate in stream invertebrates, which fish eat, and further accumulate in fish. Thus, eating affected fish has implications for human health. We have not shown this yet, it’s just a concern,” O’Donnell said.
Initial samples were analyzed by Poulin and Taylor Evinger, a Ph.D. candidate in agricultural and environmental chemistry at UC Davis. Other scientists took samples in June and July of 2023, while Poulin and Evinger collected their own in August.
Some samples from the rusted waters had a pH of 2.3 — the average for the rivers is 8. This indicated that the sulfide minerals were weathering, leaving conditions that were highly acidic and corrosive and releasing additional metals. The team measured high or elevated levels of zinc, iron, nickel, cadmium and copper.
“We see a lot of different types of metals in these waters,” Evinger said in the press release. “One of the most dominant metals is iron. That’s what is causing the color change.”
O’Donnell first noted a change in 2018, but satellite images showed stained waters back in 2008.
“The issue is slowly propagating from small headwaters into bigger rivers over time,” Evinger said. “When emergent issues or threats come about, we need to be able to understand them.”
Orange circles indicate orange stream observations, red stars indicate sites where water samples were collected and blue circles are nearby villages. Hydrologic Unit Code-6 basins are shown as black outlines from the National Watershed Boundary dataset. The hill-shade layer utilizes the USGS National Elevation Dataset. Map generated in Esri ArcMap software. Map credit: Kenneth Hill, NPS
The problem of Alaska’s rusting rivers is increasing. Healthy areas are turning into degraded habitats with less fish and invertebrates. Rural communities that rely on the rivers for their drinking water may need to use treatment methods eventually, while fishing stocks could also be affected.
“As the climate continues to warm, we would expect permafrost to continue to thaw and so wherever there are these types of minerals, there’s potential for streams to be turning orange and becoming degraded in terms of water quality,” O’Donnell said in the press release.
However, many of these unsettlingly colorful rivers and streams are far from where people will encounter them.
“While permafrost can be directly impacted by human activity (e.g., roads, buildings, and other infrastructure), much of the permafrost in the Arctic is in remote spots away from towns and cities. Permafrost thaw is due to warming air temperatures which is largely a global issue. As scientists we need to work towards a solution to this problem,” O’Donnell told EcoWatch.
More investigation will be necessary to better comprehend the issues and whether rivers and streams will be able to rebound, possibly after the recovery of permafrost during cold weather.
“We are still working to understand how these rusting rivers change over time, both seasonally and year to year. For instance, streams become less orange during snowmelt, when flows are high and groundwater becomes diluted. Once we understand the mechanisms driving rusting rivers better, we’ll be better able to understand future change and trajectories,” O’Donnell told EcoWatch.
The post Alaska’s Pristine Rivers and Streams Are Turning Orange From Thawing Permafrost, Study Finds appeared first on EcoWatch.
https://www.ecowatch.com/alaska-rivers-orange-permafrost-thawing-minerals.html
Green Living
Classic Sustainability In Your Ear: The Ocean River Institute’s Natural Lawn Challenge for Climate Action
Turn back the clock with this classic interview that will get you ready for Spring yard care planning. A lawn may be beautiful but it can take a heavy toll on the environment, accounting for between 30% and 60% of residential water use in the United States. Rob Moir, Ph.D., is president and executive director of the Ocean River Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts. ORI works with residential lawn owners to heal damaged ecosystems by restoring coastal areas to lessen the destructive impacts of climate change. The benefits of a natural lawn reach far beyond reduced local water pollution, eliminating chemicals that can contribute to cancers, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and other cellular diseases. Natural lawns are also better for local pollinators and store much more carbon than heavily fertilized lawns. If you considered removing your lawn to play a part in the battle against climate change, this interview may change your mind — a healthy lawn is a powerful carbon sink.
The Ocean River Institute is recruiting Massachusetts communities, town by town, to take a pledge to follow natural lawn practices in the Healthy Soils for Climate Restoration Challenge. You don’t need to live in Massachusetts to participate and learn about the alternatives to the traditional, chemical-intensive lawn practices that use Roundup, a source of glyphosates that kills soil-dwelling fungi and local pollinators, and fast-acting nitrogen fertilizers. You can learn more about the Ocean River Institute at www.oceanriver.org.
Rob has contributed many articles about climate change and the history of environmental change since this interview, including:
- Finding a Northwest Passage to the Sea
- Turning the Tide—How Land and Water Shape Our Climate Future
- Learning from Captain Scoresby’s Ten-gallon Fir-Cask
- Earth Savvy?
- Let the Ground Keep Falling Rainwater
- The Sultans of Swag Versus Looking at Clouds from Both Sides Now
- Subscribe to Sustainability in Your Ear on iTunes and Apple Podcasts.
- Follow Sustainability in Your Ear on Spreaker, iHeartRadio, or YouTube
Editor’s Note: This episode originally aired on May 30, 2022.
The post Classic Sustainability In Your Ear: The Ocean River Institute’s Natural Lawn Challenge for Climate Action appeared first on Earth911.
https://earth911.com/podcast/earth911-podcast-the-ocean-river-institutes-natural-lawn-challenge-for-climate-action/
Choosing your perfect gown can be one of the most exciting decisions for your special day, but for the eco fashionista, it can be a challenge to find a dress that fits your values and style — but these brands have exceptional sustainable wedding dresses you’ll swoon over!
Using earth-minded materials like hemp, cruelty-free peace silk, deadstock recycled fabrics and vintage lace, and producing consciously, either in small batches or handcrafting each individual piece made-to-order, the brands below meet high standards for transparency, ecological sustainability, and fair labor.
[For more sustainable wedding dresses, check out this guide to secondhand wedding dress sites!]
Note that the guide contains affiliate links. As always, we only feature brands that meet strict criteria for sustainability we love, that we think you’ll love too!
1. Christy Dawn
Dreamy dress brand Christy Dawn does not disappoint with their romantic bridal collection! Each piece is more swoon-worthy than the next.
Their three sustainable bridal gowns are made from regenerative silk charmeuse —sourced through BOMBYX, an innovative silk producer using best practices — and colored in a beautiful pearl silk with non-toxic dyes. Each dress is ethically cut and sewn by makers in Los Angeles earning living wages, as with the rest of Christy Dawn’s collections.
The Britta Dress and Fitzgerald Dress are 1920s inspired while the Athena Dress is a more modern (but equally romantic) option. All of these dresses are made-to-order with an estimated timeline of 4 weeks.
Conscious Qualities: Regenerative silk and organic non-toxic dyes, ethically made-to-order in Los Angeles
Price Range: $2,500 – $3,000
Size Range: XS – XL
2. Pure Magnolia
Blending the traditional with the modern, Pure Magnolia designs classic-inspired sustainable wedding dresses with contemporary touches. And each dress is made in their Canadian studio by seamstresses earning fair wages from eco-fabrics, such as organic cotton and hemp silk.
The brand sources recycled fabrics whenever possible as well, and recycles their scrap fabric through FABCYCLE.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, locally and fairly made, recycles scrap fabrics
Price Range: $845 – $3,300 CAD
Size Range: 0 – 28
3. Lost in Paris
Lost in Paris crafts each of their creatively designed bohemian-inspired gowns ethically in their Sydney, Australia studio. Unconventional yet undeniably striking, Lost in Paris’ dresses are made from vintage lace and cotton.
Investing in a dress from Lost in Paris is seamless — the brand offers at-home sample try-ons, offers train and sleeve adjustments on several styles, ships their dresses worldwide for free, and even accepts returns. Oh, and, if one of their ready-made sizes doesn’t work for you, you can get a dress designed to your measurements.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, uses vintage lace, locally made
Price Range: $950 – $3900 AUD
Size Range: XXS – XXL + custom sizing options
For More Slow Fashion Content:
4. Wear Your Love
Wear Your Love creates feminine, effortless dresses in their Northern California studio that are — in contrast to the majority of wedding dresses on the market — actually comfortable! The brand’s free-spirited designs are made with soft, earth-minded fabrics like organic cotton and each dress is made to order for each bride to their exact measurements.
There are also customizations available for each eco-friendly wedding dress such as train or no train, skirt or sleeve linings, back coverage, skirt style, and more.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, made-to-order model, locally and transparently made
Price Range: $680 – $1,700
Size Range: N/A; dresses are made to your measurements
5. Larimeloom
Based in Reggio Emilia, Italy, Larimeloom crafts exceptional custom-made dresses by hand in their atelier. The brand creates comfortable minimalist dresses from durable natural fabrics and colors them with natural or non-toxic dyes.
Larimeloom has also implemented zero waste design techniques, cutting their patterns strategically in order to minimize fabric waste.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, zero-waste designs, natural fabrics and dyes
Price Range: 650€ – 2,650€
Size Range: XS – XL
6. Sister Organics
Sourcing quality earth-friendly natural fabrics like organic hemp and cotton, Sister Organics creates classic, eco-friendly wedding dresses for UK-based brides.
Each dress is made to order in England, so you can select a pre-defined size, customize the length of a size, or get an entirely different dress made for your measurements.
Conscious Qualities: Eco-friendly fabrics, made-to-order model
Price Range: £125 – £390
Size Range: XXS – XXL + custom sizing
7. Indiebride London
Indiebride’s vintage-inspired sustainable wedding dresses are delicate and romantic yet free-spirited, offering a unique collection for the bride that wants to skip the conventional wedding gown and choose a piece that fits their individual style.
The brand’s conscious wedding dresses are handmade in London using majority natural fibers and can be altered or customized to your specifications.
Conscious Qualities: Made-to-order model, uses many natural fabrics, locally made
Price Range: £1,200 – £1,700
Size Range: 8 – 16 (UK sizes)
More Resources For Your Eco Wedding:
10 Secondhand Wedding Dress Sites for the Eco Bride
7 Ethical Lab-Grown Diamond Engagement and Wedding Rings
17 Brands with Conscious Dresses (great options for bridesmaid dresses in here!)
The post 7 Best Sustainable Wedding Dresses for Your Special Day appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
Get organized in style with the beautiful sustainable dressers, wardrobes, and armoires from these furniture companies using responsibly-sourced FSC-Certified wood or upcycled wood.
Note that this guide includes affiliate links, which means we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you if you choose to make a purchase through these links.
What Makes A Dresser Sustainable?
As with anything in sustainability, there are various approaches that can make something “sustainable”.
Secondhand
With over 12 million tons (or 24 billion pounds) of furniture getting wasted each year in the United States alone, it’s definitely a great idea to look used when possible!
Secondhand not only helps divert furniture from the landfill, but reduces the need to extract new materials, whether that’s metal, wood, cotton, or increasingly, petroleum for synthetic fabrics and plastic.
Here’s where to look for secondhand dressers:
- Garage sales and estate sales (check EstateSales.net!)
- Facebook Marketplace
- OfferUp
- AptDeco
Responsibly Sourced Wood
Most storage furniture, like dressers, are made from wood (or engineered wood). While wood is a natural material, deforestation is a significant driver of climate change.
So, look for domestic or certified sustainably-sourced wood when purchasing wooden furniture. The largest most common certification is FSC, which stands for Forest Stewardship Council.
Even better is if you can find furniture made from reclaimed wood! This is basically upcycled wood that is being repurposed. This reclaimed wood can come from old barns, ships, factories, warehouses, or even wine barrels.
Non-Toxic Finishes
Unfortunately, many wood finishes contain harmful petroleum- and chemical-based solvents which can emit VOCs, or volatile organic compounds. While the toxicity is most severe during application and does reduce with time, the chemicals can build up in your home, so you may feel most comfortable minimizing risk of VOCs.
Why does this matter? Well, the EPA reports that indoor air can be 2-5 times more polluted than outdoor air — largely due to what we bring into our homes, from furniture to household cleaners.
Look for low-VOC finishes, water-based finishes, or natural oil finishes like linseed oil.
Where to Find Sustainably Made Dressers
I’ve done the grunt work for you and curated furniture brands with sustainable dressers, armoires, and wardrobes below!
1. Urban Natural
Highlights: Sustainably-Sourced Woods,
Price Range: $1,245 – $9,000+
For a one-stop shop for sustainable storage furniture, look no further than Urban Natural. The retailer has a stunning selection of timeless sustainable dressers (including non-toxic dressers for nurseries) made with responsibly sourced wood and several with non-toxic finishes too.
Urban Natural’s workshop partners use materials like solid oak, cherry, maple, and walnut — and many of the brands prioritize local sourcing as well.
2. Avocado
Highlights: Reclaimed or FSC-Certified Wood, GREENGUARD Gold Certified, Zero VOC Finish
Price Range: $1,939 – $3,999
Avocado’s sustainable dressers are made in Los Angeles in their own FSC-certified woodshop. Beautifully designed with a timeless mid-century modern or Scandinavian-inspired aesthetic, Avocado’s dressers are also built to last. Each dresser is made with either responsibly sourced FSC-Certified wood or reclaimed wood. Most of the company’s non-toxic bedroom furniture is also finished with a non-toxic zero-VOC finish to you can sleep easy.
3. Thuma
Highlights: Upcycled Solid Wood, GREENGUARD Gold Certified, Modular
Price Range: $1,165 – $3,495
Designed for maximum functionality and versatility, Thuma’s sustainable dressers give you endless options. Configure a couple drawers for a nightstand and add on more drawers vertically or horizontally for a full dresser that can fit any space.
The modular setup may be especially useful for families with evolving needs — you can add on more drawers if your needs grow or separate a large dresser into two smaller ones.
4. Medley
Highlights: Non-Toxic, USA Made
Price Range: $4,136
Medley’s sustainable dressers are handmade to order in California. The wide dresser pictured here comes in maple or walnut sourced domestically in the US.
The tops and sides are solid hardwood and FSC-certified, low-VOC CARB 2 compliant hardwood plywood is used in the rest of the dresser. The piece is finished with non-toxic natural beeswax.
5. MasayaCo
Highlights: FSC-Certified Reforested Wood, 1.2 Million Trees Planted
Price Range: $2,295 – $2,395
MasayaCo is committed to responsible sourcing for all of their sustainable storage furniture. Each FSC-Certified piece is made to order by skilled artisans in Nicaragua from 100% solid teak wood that comes from their own reforestation projects. Even more impressive, the company leaves 40% of these projects completely untouched to thrive on its own.
Their stunning credenzas could easily be used as dressers, too.
6. West Elm Sustainably Sourced Collection
Highlights: Non-Toxic and Responsibly-Sourced Options
Price Range: $879 – $2499
West Elm is a large retailer with options for more eco-friendly dressers. Among their selection, you can curate by filters such as GREENGUARD Gold Certified, crafted in Fair Trade Certified facilities, made from responsibly-sourced wood, and/or Contract Grade (i.e. high quality + durable).
7. Crate & Barrel FSC-Certified (Honorable Mention)
Price Range: $899 – $2,699
While Crate & Barrel does not have as many sustainability efforts as other large retailers like West Elm, the company has a vast selection of FSC-certified wood storage furniture, including dressers, chests, and full wardrobes or armoires.
You’ll find an array of woods and finishes as well, from weathered rustic natural wood to dark espresso-finished wood.
More Guides Like This:
21 Best Places to Find Sustainable Furniture
8 Gorgeous Sustainable Tables to Gather Around
Best Eco-Friendly and Non-Toxic Sofas to Relax In
The post 7 Sustainable Dressers and Armoires to Store it All Away in Style (2026) appeared first on Conscious Life & Style.
7 Sustainable Dressers and Armoires to Store it All Away in Style (2026)
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