Written by Brooke Marie Stalker
Over the past few weeks, my attempts at writing this article have been rather feeble. Upon getting something down on paper, I would read it back the next day and couldn’t help but look at drinking water as a rather taboo subject, coming off a bit too crude for writing about water. Absorbing all of these futile attempts, a larger picture appeared to me, how it evaded me, I am rather ashamed to say I am unsure. The problem behind our miniscule sources of clean drinking water is not that our government does not care, or that they deliberately want us to ingest these harmful chemicals, but rather our own personal desires for the next best product is constantly fueling our waterways with hazardous chemicals.
How in the hell the multiple years that I learned about weather systems has remained dormant leaves me perplexed. Reading the published list of contaminants by the Environmental Protection Agency is what lit the light bulb for this conscious drinker. Reading through the list, majority involved discharge from refineries and factories; runoff from fertilizer use; or corrosion of household plumbing systems. The list of sources is far more expansive than I care to remember for my own sanity but feel free to look for your self.
Through the information gathering I have gained a new acceptance and appreciation for the EPA. Truth is however, the amount of industrialization across majority of America leaves little room for the possibility of safe drinking water. Shoot, even if the government had the ability to get the water in the facility filtered, the piping in ones home would cause for harmful additives after the cleaning. Because of this sad truth, in order to drink water that does not induce Potential Health effects that range everywhere from diarrhea, vomiting, nervous system, kidney and liver problems, to reproductive issues, and blood pressure problems, one must pay for filtered water.
Common ways of going about this are bottled water and purchasing a water filtration system for your faucet or fridge. Great for ones health, this technique is not as healthy for ones wallet. And what is even more of a provoking thought, this technique is also not helping in fixing the problem, which are our water systems, both of these sources adding to the pollution during their creation.
Luckily my research has opened my eyes to a fabulous natural resource that has the ability to purify unclean water. At last I am relieved to inform you to the reason behind this article, BINCHOTAN. Indigenous to the Kishu Region of Japan, Binchotan is a charcoal made from the heating of oak branches at extremely high temperatures. In order to use the charcoal to cleanse your water, the simplest of courses must be taken.
First off, boil the piece of charcoal for about 10 minutes. Drain the water and allow the coal to completely cool, while you fill your pitcher with water. Place your cooled piece of Binchotan into the pitcher and place in the fridge. The coal will bubble as it purifies the water. Keep using this same piece of coal for 2 to 3 weeks until you have to reactive, or rather boil the coal again. Overall the same coal should last you about 3 months.
Acceptance is key in this fight for clean water. Our way of life leaves no room for an easy access for Americans to clean drinking water. Rather than adding to the problem and increasing our national debt, enlist the help of mother earth and choose a natural way to filter your water. Here are a few links for some further information.
Pleasant drinking!
http://www.morihata.com/products/binchotan/
