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Bye bye Britta

binchotan charcoal

It’s kind of amazing what a little piece of binchotan charcoal can do to a jug of water…

2016 is the year of less plastic. I’m not going so far as to say that I will eliminate all plastic from my life, but I’m going to put a concerted effort into reducing my plastic use as much as I can. That much I am willing to promise. And in keeping with that resolution, I am now, officially, no longer just taking note of and bookmarking ideas that might help me achieve this goal. I am putting them into action. Because that’s what the 2016 version of myself does.

Along these lines, there I was at my friend Rita’s place (she is a bit further along the no-more-plastic road than I am) and she served us water from a beautiful glass carafe with this black stick in it. The whole thing looked like a minimalist sculpture. She explained that bichotan charcoal has been used by the Japanese for hundreds of years to draw the impurities out of water. Since you can choose your own vessel, you can easily ditch the plastic pitchers for a glass carafe. I swear the water tastes brighter.

There is a small amount of prep involved… You must boil the charcoal in water for 10 minutes to activate it and repeat this process approximately every two weeks to reactivate the sticks. They will last three to four months before they need replacing, and you can stick the “used” bits in the fridge to absorb smells (instead of baking soda) or in your compost for some extra nutrition.

But I say that little bit of effort is well worth it.

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