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The creek behind my house turned orange last spring and I can't stop thinking about it
I live up near Boone, North Carolina, and there's a little creek that runs through the back of my property. Last April after a heavy rain, the water turned a bright orange color for about three days. I tested the pH and it was down around 4.5, which I think is from old mine runoff getting stirred up. Has anyone else noticed weird changes in local water sources that seem to be getting worse?
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violar353mo ago
That 4.5 pH is definitely acidic but I'd check if it was just a one-time thing from the rain before getting too worried. Lots of creeks in that area hit low pH after storms without it being a long-term problem.
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jason_lewis33mo ago
Bright orange" sounds like iron-oxidizing bacteria, not just mine runoff.
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avery_flores173mo ago
Yeah it's wild how often we see that orange tint in creeks around town and just blame it on mining when bacteria is doing the same thing. Kinda makes you wonder how much of what we call pollution is actually just nature doing its thing.
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