Arsenic Catastrophe in Bangladesh: Mitigation Perspective and Implementation Challenges

Abstract

One of the worst health hazards in Bangladesh is arsenic contamination of drinking water, which demands immediate and urgent remedial measures. About 29 percent of the tested tubewells in the shallow aquifers are contaminated with arsenic beyond safe limit of Bangladesh standards and about 81 percent of the villagers are now affected with this poison where 27 percent of those are beyond Bangladesh standard. This study identifies treatment technologies and alternative water supply options presently available in Bangladesh for minimizing this catastrophe. The paper reveals that deep tubewells, well accepted by the communities during the past few decades, emerge to be a more suitable alternate option to mitigate this crisis in Bangladesh. Finally the paper identifies the challenges for institutionalizing these treatment technologies or alternative water supply options in arsenic problem areas.