Arsenic in groundwater in the Bengal Delta Plain: slow poisoning in Bangladesh

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the problems concerning the widespread occurrences of arsenic in groundwater in Bangladesh, a land with enormous resources of precipitation, surface water, and groundwater. Because of the potential risk of microbiological contamination in the surface water, groundwater was relied on as an alternate source of drinking water. Exploitation of groundwater has increased dramatically in Bangladesh since the 1960s to provide safe water for drinking and to sustain wetland agriculture. The presence of arsenic in the groundwater at elevated concentrations has raised a serious threat to public health in the region. Nearly 60–75 million people inhabiting a large geographical area are at potential risk of arsenic exposure, and several thousands have…