Towards clean water: Managing risk of arsenic-contaminated groundwater for human consumption
Abhijit Mukherjee, Soumyajit Sarkar, Poulomee Coomar, Prosun Bhattacharya
Abstract
The human health risk associated with the ingestion of arsenic (As) contaminated groundwater as drinking water has been highlighted as the “largest mass-poisoning in human history.” Recently, secondary As exposure pathways have been identified through food and cattle products. Broad-based epidemiological estimation of the populations at risk is only available through statistical calculations, however, proper management needs community-level risk identification. Management strategies involve detection and monitoring, predictions, mitigations by standard and innovative technologies, and nature-based solutions for community drinking water supplies . Impacts of recent technological advancement in terms of real-time sensors and predictive modeling have outlined potential future possibilities. However, successful management would need to explore the nexus between 3-D contaminant occurrence over time, socio-economy, policy, and human behavior in delineating sustainable, clean water sources for sustainable development .