TY - GEN
T1 - Wide spread arsenic in deeper groundwater of western Bengal basin, West Bengal, India
T2 - 4th International Congress on Arsenic in the Environment, As 2012
AU - Mukherjee, A.
AU - Fryar, A. E.
AU - Scanlon, B. R.
AU - Bhattacharya, P.
AU - Thunvik, R.
AU - Bhattacharya, A.
PY - 2012
Y1 - 2012
N2 - Availability of safe drinking water is a major concern in the delta plains of the major Himalayan-Tibetan rivers in southern and southeastern Asia. While indiscriminate use of rivers and other surface water bodies for disposal of sewage and industrial waste has rendered them non-potable, natural, non-point source, elevated Arsenic (As) concentrations in groundwater exceeding the World Health Organization's (WHO) guideline value for drinking water of 0.01 mg/L have put millions of people at risk. Hence, finding an alternate, suitable and sustainable drinking-water source has been a priority in these areas. Generally, higher concentrations of dissolved As are found in groundwater of shallower aquifers and several studies have advocated deeper aquifers as a possible safe substitute. Using a composite hydro-geological approach, we demonstrate that regional-scale deeper groundwater As contamination in the western Bengal basin is dependent on the aquifer-aquitard framework and complex redox processes with partial equilibrium under natural flow conditions. Widespread deep irrigation pumping may be drawing shallower, contaminated groundwater down to greater depths. These findings have severe implications on finding alternate drinking water sources, in West Bengal, and adjoining areas of Bangladesh, with plausible similar geological and hydrogeological framework.
AB - Availability of safe drinking water is a major concern in the delta plains of the major Himalayan-Tibetan rivers in southern and southeastern Asia. While indiscriminate use of rivers and other surface water bodies for disposal of sewage and industrial waste has rendered them non-potable, natural, non-point source, elevated Arsenic (As) concentrations in groundwater exceeding the World Health Organization's (WHO) guideline value for drinking water of 0.01 mg/L have put millions of people at risk. Hence, finding an alternate, suitable and sustainable drinking-water source has been a priority in these areas. Generally, higher concentrations of dissolved As are found in groundwater of shallower aquifers and several studies have advocated deeper aquifers as a possible safe substitute. Using a composite hydro-geological approach, we demonstrate that regional-scale deeper groundwater As contamination in the western Bengal basin is dependent on the aquifer-aquitard framework and complex redox processes with partial equilibrium under natural flow conditions. Widespread deep irrigation pumping may be drawing shallower, contaminated groundwater down to greater depths. These findings have severe implications on finding alternate drinking water sources, in West Bengal, and adjoining areas of Bangladesh, with plausible similar geological and hydrogeological framework.
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M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:84864876361
SN - 9780415637633
T3 - Understanding the Geological and Medical Interface of Arsenic, As 2012 - 4th International Congress: Arsenic in the Environment
SP - 522
EP - 525
BT - Understanding the Geological and Medical Interface of Arsenic, As 2012 - 4th International Congress
Y2 - 22 July 2012 through 27 July 2012
ER -
