Mitigation and Remedy of Groundwater Arsenic Menace in India

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Mitigation and Remedy of Groundwater Arsenic Menace in India : A Vision DocumentFrom the findings of the above two studies, it is difficult to assess adequately the phototoxicimpact of use of arsenic contaminated groundwater and the dietary impact of the same onhuman health. More elaborate studies are required to adequately assess the situation andformulate policies and practices for agricultural methods and selection of crops in arsenicaffected areas.7.4 Critical Needs for Research and Capacity BuildingA careful analysis of the present situation, in respect of arsenic contamination ingroundwater, in various states in India, would lead us to the inevitable conclusion that while lot ofinformation and knowledge has been generated through large number of research studies, thefindings of the same have not been consolidated in a replicable model to address the sufferings ofthe people. To sum up, the critical needs for further research and human resource development,the following areas need to be addressed on a priority basis.i. A scientific and epidemiological assessment of the health impact and disease burden andidentification of hot spots for prioritizing action plan.ii.iii.iv.Consolidation of the knowledge regarding arsenic removal technologies, indigenous aswell as imported, and development of designs for appropriately scaled up models forcommunity supply systems and developing a national policy on technology options.Developing a robust, simple and user friendly, yet scientifically precise and sensitivedevice for field test kits, which could be used by the community for testing millions ofprivate sources in the countryStudies should be undertaken urgently to asses the impact of arsenic in agricultural andirrigation water and the transportation of the same in the plant and food chain.v. Capacity building and skill development in the Panchayatiraj organizations in the district,block and habitation level and also in the NGOs and civil society organizations for qualitymonitoring and surveillance as well as mitigatory actions in support of the Govt.programmes.vi.Long term change in agriculture and irrigation practice: Restricting the use ofgroundwater.7.5 Technology Options: Critical Constraints and limiting factorsBased on the experiences in countries like India, China, Bangladesh etc, the following are themajor technology options for providing Arsenic safe water in the affected areas.NIH & CGWB 135
Work Ahead: Critical Concerns and Key Challenges• Tapping ground water from alternate arsenic-free aquifers at a higher depth and propersealing-off of the arsenic bearing aquifer from the same. (>100m).• Large scale piped water supply for the rural communities by drawing water from therivers and treating them for removal of pathogenic microbes.• Conservation and quality up gradation of traditional surface water sources like ponds,dug-wells etc. in the villages. These sources are generally free from Arsenic but grosslycontaminated with fecal pollution.• Removing arsenic from the ground water, by using technologies like, adsorption(activated alumina/Iron oxide), co-precipitation (oxidation, coagulation & filtration) orion exchange. These technologies could be applied in community plants attached tohand pump tube-wells or large dia tube-wells. Otherwise domestic filters could also bedeveloped on the basis of these technologies.Of various options stated, Tapping of Arsenic free aquifers is restricted by the absenceof clay barrier between the upper arseniferrous aquifer and the deeper Arsenic free aquifers, ashas been found in parts of West Bengal, India. In some places, the water bearing aquifer isrestricted to 80 to 90 m only, due to presence of hard rock beneath the same. The use of ArsenicTreatment Units fitted to hand pumps, are also facing the problem of sustainability because ofthe problem of operation & maintenance. A community based system of O&M, and activeparticipation and cost sharing by the people, are essential for these to be successful. So far asdomestic units are concerned, experience suggests low acceptability by the people. Consideringthat in the long run, use of ground water must be restricted in the Arsenic affected areas. Themost appropriate technology option, for countries with high annual rainfall and large perennialsurface water sources, appears to be the surface water based piped water supply systems.However, it is also the most capital intensive among all the options. Sustainability of suchsystems would be assured by people's participation in the operation and maintenance & costsharing.7.6 Key Factors Impeding the Progress of Mitigatory Programmes in theArsenic Affected States.Given the experience, in the developing countries of Asia, where Arsenic ingroundwater is posing a great challenge to the health of a large number of people, the followingcould be mentioned as the major factors impeding the progress of the projects to address theproblem.• Gap between the perceived need of the people and approach of the implementingagencies.136NIH & CGWB
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTThe Government of In
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nearly 33 villages in 4 districts i
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(iii) Whether ex-situ removal techn
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6.4 Experiences during Arsenic Remo
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List of FiguresFigure no. Figure ca
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List of TablesTable no. Table Capti
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5.2.2 Co-precipitationMitigation an
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Mitigation and Remedy of Groundwater Arsenic Menace in India

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