Digging deeper - pp1

doi:10.1038/ngeo747

Arsenic contamination of groundwater affects millions of people in southern Asia. Water from deep wells could help, but only if used in moderation.

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The socio-economics of arsenic removal - pp2 - 3

Richard Bart Johnston, Suzanne Hanchett & Mohidul Hoque Khan

doi:10.1038/ngeo735

Nearly an eighth of the population in Bangladesh relies on arsenic-contaminated drinking water. Arsenic removal filters could help to reduce exposure, but their price is high for the poor and their maintenance cumbersome.

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Anthropogenic arsenic - pp5 - 6

Shawn Benner

doi:10.1038/ngeo726

Arsenic occurs naturally in the groundwaters of southern Asia. Analyses of an agricultural site in Bangladesh suggest that human activities, including widespread farming practices, can dictate where elevated arsenic is found.

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Vulnerability of deep groundwater in the Bengal Aquifer System to contamination by arsenic

W. G. Burgess, M. A. Hoque, H. A. Michael, C. I. Voss, G. N. Breit & K. M. Ahmed

doi:10.1038/ngeo750

Arsenic levels in shallow groundwater in the Bengal Basin exceed thresholds for safe drinking water. Groundwater modelling indicates that deep wells that reach safe water below 150 m could remain safe for centuries if used for domestic water only, whereas the intensive use of deep groundwater for irrigation could contaminate this resource within decades.

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Anthropogenic influences on groundwater arsenic concentrations in Bangladesh - pp46 - 52

Rebecca B. Neumann, Khandaker N. Ashfaque, A. B. M. Badruzzaman, M. Ashraf Ali, Julie K. Shoemaker & Charles F. Harvey

doi:10.1038/ngeo685

Microbially mediated oxidation of organic carbon is thought to drive the release of arsenic into groundwater. Hydrological and geochemical analyses suggest that pond water is the source of organic carbon in groundwater in Bangladesh.

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Arsenic release from paddy soils during monsoon flooding - pp53 - 59

Linda C. Roberts, Stephan J. Hug, Jessica Dittmar, Andreas Voegelin, Ruben Kretzschmar, Bernhard Wehrli, Olaf A. Cirpka, Ganesh C. Saha, M. Ashraf Ali & A. Borhan M. Badruzzaman

doi:10.1038/ngeo723

Bangladesh relies heavily on groundwater for the irrigation of dry-season rice. Analysis of soil porewater and floodwater in rice paddy fields during the monsoon season in Bangladesh suggests that flooding removes a significant amount of the arsenic from soils.

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Poisoned backwaters - pp68

Charles Harvey

doi:10.1038/ngeo727

Charles Harvey and colleagues got to know a snake charmer and his cobras while trying to unravel the mystery of groundwater arsenic contamination in Bangladesh.

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Rising arsenic risk?-

David Polya & Laurent Charlet

doi:10.1038/ngeo537

Millions of people in southern Asia rely on arsenic-contaminated groundwater to live. Massive water withdrawals through wells may be increasing the problem by drawing arsenic-mobilizing substances into shallow aquifers and arsenic-contaminated shallow groundwaters into deeper aquifers.

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Arsenic meets dense populations-

Alexander van Geen

doi:10.1038/ngeo268

In the South Asian lowlands, high population density coincides with dangerous levels of arsenic in groundwater. Maps based on surface geology can help identify regions at risk of arsenic contamination.

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Predicting groundwater arsenic contamination in Southeast Asia from surface parameters -

Lenny Winkel, Michael Berg, Manouchehr Amini, Stephan J. Hug & C. Annette Johnson

doi:10.1038/ngeo254

Arsenic contamination of groundwater resources threatens the health of millions of people in the densely populated river deltas of Southeast Asia. Holocene deltaic and organic-rich surface sediments are key indicators for arsenic risk areas.

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All hands to the pump -

Lenny Winkel

doi:10.1038/ngeo266

Lenny Winkel and colleagues found that strong arm muscles can be required to test South Sumatran groundwater samples for arsenic content.

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