Contamination of Drinking Water by Arsenic in South-East Asia: Causes, Effects and Remediation

Abstract

Abstract-Groundwater contamination by arsenic in different parts of the world is an outcome of natural and/or anthropogenic sources, leading to adverse effects on human health and ecosystem. M illions of people from different countries are heavily dependent on groundwater, which contains higher level of arsenic. Commonly, groundwater is an only source of water in the South-East Asian countries for drinking and domestic purposes. However, the presence of raised concentrations of inorganic arsenic in groundwater in South-East Asian countries, particularly in the regions of Bangladesh and the eastern part of India, is a cause for concern. M ost people residing in this geographic location have no alternative but to drink contaminated groundwater, which has arsenic concentrations above the permissible limit (0.01 mg/L). As a result, approximately 123 million people in Bangladesh and India face higher risk of cancer, as well as risk of cardiovascular and neurologic diseases. M any techniques for removing arsenic from drinking water are accessible. This paper has mainly been focused on the region of South-East Asian countries, especially Bangladesh and India to investigate the extent of arsenic contamination and its toxic effects on human health, explore the sources of arsenic in this region, and compare and contrast the technologies of arsenic removal from drinking water in general.