Efforts to recycle “disposable body warmers”, which are convenient for keeping warm easily, have attracted attention on Twitter.
On February 6, 2023, the J-CAST News editorial department interviewed Go Green Group (Osaka City), which collects disposable body warmers, regarding how they started their business.
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Tomi Narihara’s manga that became a hot topic on SNS (1)
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Tomi Narihara’s manga that became a hot topic on SNS (2)
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Cairo is processed into water purification agent “GoGreenCube”
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Dismantling work of disposable body warmers
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Dismantling work of disposable body warmers
Contributing to water purification in ponds, etc.
The trigger that attracted attention was an essay manga posted on Twitter by manga artist Tonmi Narihara (@tonmi_n). She said that she donates the disposable body warmers that she used a lot during the winter to the Go Green Group, and she said that she is romantic regarding science and technology that the discarded body warmers can be used for other purposes.
In an interview, Narihara revealed that he became interested in the project a few years ago following seeing a tweet introducing a project to collect body warmers. She says that her motivation for drawing the manga was “Knowledge that there is such a project because Cairo is often used seasonally.” In the manga, he explained that when allergic cough asthma is severe, putting a warm pad between or slightly above the shoulder blades makes it feel more comfortable, but added that there is no medical evidence, so please judge at your own risk.
As of 15:00 on the 7th, the manga has been retweeted more than 16,000 times and received over 23,000 “likes”. It seems that there were quite a few people who felt that it would be a waste to dispose of the Cairo. was taken.
How are collected disposable body warmers recycled? Takashi Yamashita, CEO of the Go Green Group, explained to the interviewer that recycled body warmers are used as a water purification agent, and are used in ponds of temples and shrines, ponds of government offices, and moats of ancient tombs that are World Heritage Sites.
According to the official website, the body warmers will be processed into GoGreenCube, a water purification agent. When divalent iron ions contained in body warmers are eluted into water, they combine with hydrogen sulfide and phosphoric acid contained in sludge and become harmless. As a result, water quality is improved, and an ideal aquatic environment for aquatic organisms can be maintained.
Impressed by the research, “I can’t believe that using garbage can improve the environment…”
Mr. Yamashita got involved in the Cairo recycling business when he learned regarding the research of Professor Tsuyoshi Sasaki of Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology.
Yamashita’s previous job was a convenience store owner. He said he felt guilty regarding food loss and other issues, and thought regarding what he might do for the global environment. Seeing a Chinese woman working part-time buy a large amount of Cairo as souvenirs from her hometown, she wondered, “What is Cairo in the first place?”
“When I was researching cairo on the Internet, I came across a study by the Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology, and was impressed, saying, ‘This is amazing! How can the environment be improved by using garbage?
Since the winter of 2018, the golf course has cooperated, and from January 2021, the general public has also collected body warmers. We are currently collecting them all over the country.
“We have not been able to ascertain all collection locations. Everyone is volunteering to collect Cairo. About 10,000 individuals, more than 100 schools, and more than 300 companies from Hokkaido to Okinawa. With your cooperation, we have collected nearly 100 tons of body warmers so far.”
Regarding being talked regarding on SNS this time, I am grateful, saying, “I feel very grateful.” It is said that many inquiries have been received. Regarding the future, he enthusiastically said, “There are still few places where water purification materials are used, so the challenge is to increase them.”
(Kyoko Takigawa, J-CAST News Editorial Department)
