Ruri teams up with Shoko for a science project, which takes a turn when they discover a strange, orange rock.
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206. By the way, some say that
fluorite has healing properties.
207. Honestly, I wasn't sure
if this was the right approach.
208. Apparently, it helps improve
concentration and mental health.
209. Really?
210. There's tons of information contained in water,
211. but it's not always derived from rocks.
212. Hey, about that orange rock
that Seto-san found in the river...
213. Yeah, I would've liked to see it.
214. We tried looking for others,
but couldn't find any more.
215. Do you think we could search for it this way?
216. Hmm... That's difficult without
knowing what kind of rock it was.
217. We don't know which component to look for.
218. Yeah...
219. Besides, even if we could identify the rock,
220. that doesn't mean we can find it.
221. Yeah...
222. Still wanna give it a shot?
223. You were right about
testing water quality, too.
224. I told you!
225. I wanna help Seto-san find
an answer to that mystery rock.
226. Okay then, it's settled.
227. Nagi's Respite
228. In many cases, the water found in Japan is soft water. Soft water means that it contains low levels of calcium and magnesium. In contrast, hard water is more common in places like Europe and other continental regions.
So, why is that? One reason lies in the geology—that is, the presence of limestone. While Europe has a large amount of limestone-rich earth, in Japan, limestone makes up less than 0.5% of the land. If you search across Japan, slightly harder water can be found in southern Okinawa, where the land is formed from ancient coral reefs, which are rich in limestone.
Another reason for Japan's water hardness lies in its topography.
Despite its small size, Japan is very mountainous. This means rivers are short and steep, so water flows quickly from the mountains to the sea. As a result, water has less time to absorb minerals from the rocks it passes through.
In contrast, rivers on large continents tend to flow more slowly over longer distances, which gives them more time to pick up minerals, leading to harder water.
229. Limestone
changes
the flavor
of water?
230. Does taste different, though
231. Areas with more limestone
232. Okinawa Island
233. Nagi's Respite
234. Mineral resources have played an essential role in our lives since ancient times, but they have also long carried the risk of causing serious and widespread harm into the future.
Sulfur mines can contain large amounts of pyrite, and when this pyrite
is exposed to water and oxygen, it reacts to form sulfuric acid.
This acid can flow into downstream rivers, making the water highly acidic and uninhabitable for aquatic life.
Another concern is cadmium, a toxic metal commonly found in zinc ores. During the refining process, cadmium can remain in wastewater or mine tailings, requiring caution in surrounding areas.
Mining can also cause physical problems. Because it creates underground cavities, it can lead to land subsidence and surface collapses in nearby areas.
Japan is no exception when it comes to mine-related problems like these, but thanks to decades of dedicated research and environmental monitoring, our understanding has improved significantly, laying the groundwork for the preventative measures we have today.
235. Pollution caused by mining
236. There's a lot of
research on it
237. So what do you think?
Do our tests give you any clues?
238. Let's start by looking for
indicator elements of ore deposits.
239. Target mines
240. Indicator elements
241. found underwater
242. Zinc
243. Iron
244. Manganese
245. Gold
246. Silver
247. Bronze
248. Lead
249. Zinc
250. Manganese
251. Iron
252. Good indicator
253. Likely indicator
254. Unlikely indicator
255. Not viable
256. Around here, you can find
iron, manganese, and zinc.
257. These are useful in locating
metal ore deposits.
258. Zinc looks like a good choice.
259. You'd find a lot of minerals with it.
260. But these three could all be
from factory wastewater.
261. Iron and manganese are usually
detected near factories.
262. Come on, did you really
have to bring that up now?
263. Right, Seto-san?
264. Sorry.
265. I feel bad about getting you both involved
266. without knowing if we'll even find it.
267. We're just as interested
in finding these orange rocks.
268. Don't feel bad for asking for our help.
269. No need to solve every concern
before taking action.
270. Or to wait until you've
formulated a fool-proof theory.
271. If you think that way, you'll
never do anything. Right, Imari?
272. Y-Yup!
273. If we find it, great. If not, oh well.
274. Let's give it our best shot.
275. Okay.
276. Look!
277. It's faint, but there's
definitely a zinc reaction!
278. Let's see... this place is...
279. Huh? There's no reaction.
280. We got one on this side!
281. How about here?
282. Is it just me, or is it getting darker?
283. Let's wait and see a bit longer.
284. The water upstream gets even darker!
285. Whoa, that's gotta be over the limit.
286. It must mean that we're on the right track!
287. Best not to put your weight on this rock.
288. Looks like it could crumble.
289. Watch out for this rock.
290. M'kay...
291. There's a clearing up ahead.
292. Is this an abandoned factory?
293. Looks like it.
294. I can't say it feels very inviting.
295. So that zinc, iron, and manganese
from our tests were...
296. They all likely seeped out of this factory.
297. All that work just to learn it was wastewater.
298. Water is affected by all kinds
of facets of our world.
299. It happens.
300. If rocks are indicators
that tell us about the past,
301. then constantly flowing river water
teaches us about the present.
302. Water contains substances from the air.
303. Animal waste and the decay of
plants and animals increase the level of organic pollution
304. Exhaust gases in the atmosphere are
a major cause of sulfate ions in water
305. It reflects the activity
of nearby plants and animals.
306. Inorganic substances
mainly come from rocks,
such as magnesium, iron, etc.
307. And, of course,
the same goes for rocks.
308. Water is also impacted by
seasonal changes and the weather.
309. We may not always notice it, but the
state of our environment is undeniable.
310. That reality is all here,
mixed in bodies of water.
311. Still, we were able to
find fluorite with fluorine.
312. If we look for another element, do you
think we can still find the orange rock?
313. But wouldn't water pollution
make that difficult?
314. Even if it were all from the factory,
we wouldn't be able to tell.
315. You're right!
316. I should give environmental issues
a piece of my mind.
317. We can't research rocks because of you!
318. Even a faint reaction is
a huge roadblock in our research.
319. We may not have found the orange rock...
320. But it looks like this was a great lesson.
321. Um, can we take some pictures of the factory?
322. It's dangerous, so just a few.
323. Maybe this is where the water was
before it seeped out.
324. Whatever it was, I doubt it was
safe to mix into the river.
325. That's huge. Is it a roasting furnace?
326. O-Owie...
327. You okay?
328. Yeah. What was that thing?
329. Looked like a squirrel.
330. Jeez, it came out of nowhere.
331. Nagi-san! This is the orange rock
we found at the river!
332. It really is orange.
333. What's going on?
334. Whoa! What's that?
335. Could it be zincite?
336. You know what it is?
337. Its Japanese name literally
means "red zinc ore."
338. Red Zinc Ore
339. Zincite
340. Just as its name suggests,
it's a red mineral made of zinc oxide.
341. Zinc is red?
342. The red color comes from impurities.
343. Or more specifically, it's from manganese.
344. Let's take some home and research it.
345. Senpai and I may be too big to crawl in there.
346. Seto-san, wanna give it a try?
347. M-Me?
348. Th-That's okay. Tanigawa-san,
you're smaller than me—
349. Seto-san!
350. This one's all yours. It's gotta be!
351. I'll try my best.
352. Zincite is a rare mineral, only found
in a few places in the world.
353. It's that rare?
354. It requires extremely
specific conditions to form.
355. Specific conditions?
356. Zinc minerals easily formed
from magma
357. Sphalerite
358. Zincite forms through a series
of complex chemical reactions,
359. Breaks down in neutral
to alkaline environments
360. Smithsonite
361. Further decomposition
progresses
362. but environments that meet all
of these conditions are extremely rare.
363. Hydrozincite
364. Water and carbon dioxide are
released due to heating from magma, etc.
365. Zincite
366. And even then, zincite usually
only forms as small crystals.
367. Naturally occurring,
gem-sized crystals are very rare.
368. As far as I know, they've only been found
at the Franklin Mine in the U.S..
369. I'm starting to doubt
if this is really zincite.
370. Are you sure it's not something else?
371. I meant only natural zincite.
372. Its composition is fairly simple,
so it can form by accident.
373. There's been reported cases
of zincite crystals forming
374. Oxygen in the air
375. Vaporized high-purity zinc
376. inside factory chimneys where
vaporized zinc met oxygen.
377. The same has happened from zinc mine
fires or accidents during zinc refining.
378. This pipe likely happened
to have similar conditions.
379. It's the result of a unique, human-made
environment rarely found in nature.
380. A special mineral indeed.
381. What's the matter? I thought you
came to work on your report.
382. Factory Wastewater and
Environmental Issues
383. It's pretty, but...
384. I'd never guess it's from that dirty
old factory just by looking at it.
385. When I think about how it formed,
I'm not sure if I'm allowed to feel happy.
386. Well, you should feel happy.
387. Ruri-chan... I mean, Tanigawa-san.
388. You encouraged me to find it.
389. This is the first rock that I found—
390. I mean, that my friend and I found together.
391. So I hope... when you look at this rock...
392. You'd think back on that and feel happy too...
393. Well, duh! Of course I will!
394. I was just thinking about
something else for a bit.
395. Something else?
396. I was wondering what makes
things "good" or "bad."
397. Our world feels too complicated
to view in black and white.
398. Wow, Tanigawa-san.
I didn't expect that from you.
399. Wait, did I just say something cool?
400. Not really, but I'm looking
forward to your report now.