Climate Change, Metal and Waterways

High in the Rocky Mountains, just west of the Continental Divide, metal concentrations in the Upper Snake River have been climbing over the last 30 years. And strong evidence referring to climate change proves to be the cause of such changes in metal concentrations, particularly rising temperatures. Although rising metal concentrations are occurring, they do not pose a direct threat to water for drinking or agriculture. However, although they do not pose a threat to humans, these rising metal concentrations pose a concern for the whole alpine ecosystem. For example, at Deer Creek and the Upper Snake River the water is sometimes milky with aluminum precipitate that blankets the riverbed and smothers life underneath. This is referred to as white death. Rising stream temperatures and changing hydrology also make it very difficult for local flora and fauna to grow properly. http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/26/climate-change-metal-and-waterways/?ref=earth