Friends for Environmental Justice

10/05/2026

We are in so much trouble...

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ByF2NVNVf/

Some of Alaska’s clearest Arctic rivers are turning orange, and researchers say the cause is thawing ground, not nearby mining.

A new AGU Advances study found that acidic runoff raised some metal concentrations in the Salmon River to as much as 70 times upstream levels, with elevated concentrations persisting more than 60 miles downstream.

Researchers led by UC Davis sampled six watersheds across Alaska’s Brooks Range during the summers of 2022 to 2024. They investigated orange streams and hillside seeps in remote areas without nearby mines, yet some samples resembled severely polluted mine drainage.

The process begins with permafrost, ground that remains frozen for at least two consecutive years. As it thaws, water can move deeper into the ground and reach minerals that were previously isolated. Sulfide minerals can react with oxygen and water, generating acidity and releasing metals such as iron, aluminum, manganese, zinc, nickel, and cadmium into streams.

The orange color comes largely from iron-rich particles forming in the water, similar to rust. Other metals can remain dissolved and travel beyond the visible staining.

Researchers traced abrupt chemical changes to 2019 and 2020, following unusually warm conditions and heavy winter snowfall. Snow can insulate the ground, slowing the release of heat during winter and helping prolong thaw.

The impacts were not the same everywhere. Larger river channels buffered much of the acidity and kept pH relatively stable, even as metal concentrations increased. That matters because water can appear less acidic while still carrying metals.

The team has not identified widespread fish deaths or drinking-water harm to villages from the studied streams, but the findings raise concerns for aquatic ecosystems and for Arctic communities, including Alaska Native communities, whose foodways, travel, and cultural practices are closely tied to rivers.

What kinds of monitoring or local knowledge partnerships would help communities better understand changes in Arctic rivers?



Sources: Earth and Planetary Sciences, Protect Our Winters, Thinc, ONE Only Natural Energy, SEJ, Alaska Native News

09/05/2026

https://www.facebook.com/thewaterislifefestival/videos/1400041488739414

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08/29/2026

Journalist Arrested While Documenting Legally Contested Enbridge Line 5 Construction
By Devon Cupery, Contributor August 28, 2026

Ashland County, WI – Police arrested video journalist and Unicorn Riot contributor River Akemann while he was documenting Enbridge Line 5 construction on August 24. He was monitoring fish in a creek where Enbridge lacks necessary authorization to install its pipeline. He received four misdemeanor charges and was released later that day. The charges include disorderly conduct, trespassing, unlawful assembly, and resisting arrest.

Canadian oil giant Enbridge has a secretive deal with Ashland County to reimburse the sheriff’s department to act as private security. Enbridge is paying police using the Wisconsin Counties Association, a lobbying group, as the pass through. The Association is not subject to state open records laws. The public won’t know how much Enbridge is paying law enforcement or how the money is being spent.

Multiple groups are suing Canadian oil giant Enbridge for proceeding with Line 5 construction without required property interests at 49 water crossings. Plaintiffs include the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa and multiple environmental organizations.

On August 14 and 17, water protectors waded in a stream where Enbridge was trenching without necessary authorization. The group held a prayerful presence in the stream and stopped construction for multiple hours. Four individuals received citations for allegedly violating an Ashland County trespassing ordinance with fines totaling $1,500. Public trust law protects access to navigable waterways in the United States.

Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline transports 22 million gallons of oil and natural gas liquids each day through the Great Lakes region. The pipeline is 73 years old, operating 20 years beyond its engineered lifespan. Enbridge is pushing to complete a 41-mile Line 5 reroute around the Bad River Reservation in Northern Wisconsin, despite numerous legal challenges.

On August 25, the older Line 5 ruptured in Saxon, WI, releasing natural gas liquids. According to Enbridge, a parked, unoccupied semi truck rolled into an excavation site and struck the pipeline. The spill occurred two miles east of the Bad River Reservation and five miles south of Lake Superior. Line 5 is currently shut down because of the spill.

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers and the DNR have asked Enbridge to stop work on the 41-mile reroute while the agency investigates the spill. DNR Secretary Kathryn Hyun said the agency is “immensely frustrated” by Enbridge’s lack of transparency regarding the spill and other recent noncompliance events.

In 2019, the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa sued Enbridge for illegal trespassing and demanded Enbridge leave their watershed. Several of Enbridge’s easements had expired in 2013, and the Bad River Band refused to renew them, citing the risk of tremendous environmental damage from potential crude oil spills. Enbridge is now rerouting the pipeline directly around the reservation despite objections from the Band. The reroute cuts through hundreds of waterways that flow into the tribe’s extensive coastal wild rice beds. The Bad River Band and environmental groups are suing to stop construction.

The aging Line 5 runs along the bottom of the Straits of Mackinac for four miles, and experts warn that the pipeline is at risk of a catastrophic rupture into the Great Lakes.

Police arrested video journalist and Unicorn Riot contributor River Akemann while he was documenting Enbridge Line 5 construction on August 24.

08/26/2026

BREAKING EXPLOSION...We know what will happen when and not if because it just happened. Part of Line 5 also runs under the Mackinaw Strait which is still flowing after 67 years like it's not our business.

When this part of the line busts, and it will contaminate our Great Lakes. This is 20% of the world's fresh water. Everyone should make this their business.

https://www.facebook.com/share/195VArd4Ay/

08/08/2026

Enough of this s**t...

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1G26K5VMia/

07/22/2026

Now we are talking water for the Hal Rogers prison project. What about the rest of the people still on well water?

Seventy-one homes at Roxana that relied on wells previously now have treated water available for the first time. The additions are part of the system built to meet the needs of a prospective federal prison in the area. Logan Stevens of Bell Engineering, which designed the water line extension, told....

07/07/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1EbytjaGkm/

For years, electricity costs for the Belden Brick Company in Sugarcreek, Ohio, had been relatively stable. Last year, they surged by 90% — largely because of rising power demand from data centers in the region. The 141-year-old brick manufacturer, whose products can be found in iconic buildings in...

06/25/2026

Who are these people and why are they messing with our ballots?