Arsenic contamination of ground and pond water and water purification system using pond water in Bangladesh

This paper, firstly, shows the distribution of arsenic-contaminated groundw ater in Samta village. This village, which is in Jessore district in Bangla desh. was chosen as a model village for investigating the mechanism of grou ndwater contamination. 90% of the tube wells in this village had arsenic co ncentrations above the Bangladesh standard of 0.05 mg/l. Tube wells with ar senic concentrations of over 0.50 mg/l were distributed in the southern par t of the village with a belt-like shape from east to west. Secondly. ground water distribution is discussed with respect to its Row and the high arseni c zone (As greater than or equal to 0.50 mg/l) agrees well with the driftin g zone of the groundwater. Furthermore, arsenic-fret: water supply systems suitable for a small area in the village have been developed. A pond sand f ilter (PSF) system which purifies pond water is discussed in this paper. Pr ior to the construction of the PSF. the water quality in ponds was examined for arsenic levels. The inflow of drainage from the tube wells was found t o be the major cause of arsenic contamination of pond water. The PSF instal led in Samta is working Very well and produces a good quality of treated wa ter. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.