Groundwater Arsenic Contamination in Bangladesh: Causes, Effects and Remediation

The serious arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bangladesh has come out recently as the biggest natural calamity in the world. The people in 59 out of 64 districts comprising 126,134 km of Bangladesh are suffering due to the arsenic contamination in drinking water. Seventy five million people are at risk and 24 million are potentially exposed to arsenic contamination. Most of the recognized stages of arsenic poisoning have been identified in Bangladesh and the risk of arsenic poisoning in the population is increasing everyday. The severity of arsenic contamination is demanding extensive research in this field. Many studies have been carried out in Bangladesh, in West Bengal, India and other countries as well, but the situation is still out of sound control. The present study is an overview of groundwater arsenic contamination in Bangladesh. This study highlights the causes and mechanisms of arsenic contamination in groundwater. The effects of arsenic contamination on human health have been revealed. It also presents several measures to remedy the arsenic contamination in groundwater.