Alaska's rivers are turning orange and no one knows why

Pretty misleading title.

It is known why the rivers are running orange. It is because the permafrost is thawing.

Sure, the exact, specific process causing the oxidation is being debated by scientists, but ... the reason is because the permafrost is thawing.

Anyway, what this nearly certainly means is that the artic has already blown past the feared warming tipping point and is now releasing methane, which is a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2.

This article should be focusing on how this likely indicates that climate change will intensify faster than commonly understood by the general public.

But instead it diverts from this.

It's a geochemistry issue.

In mine closure, artic mines will protect their tailings and waste rock using thermal covers that insulate them from heat, and allow permafrost to form, thus entombing the PAG (Potentially acid generating material - acid drainage presents orange like this too). The frost prevent oxygen (and dissolved oxygen - from water) from interacting with the material, and causing the acid-generating reaction.

With the thawing of natural permafrost, iron that was frozen (as water soluble reduced iron) is released and then oxidized, causing the orange water.

The answer rhymes with Limate Lange.

Sounds like rust. Congratulations, you've struck iron.

It's not naturally occurring aqua regia, is it?