NATURAL ARSENIC IN GROUNDWATER: OCCURRENCE, REMEDIATION AND MANAGEMENT - CHAPTER 30 ppsx

Section 5: Management of arsenic-rich
groundwaters
Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
Management of the groundwater arsenic disaster in Bangladesh
K.M. Ahmed
Department of Geology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka, Bangladesh
ABSTRACT: Arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bangladesh has emerged as the largest
water pollution event in the world. In Bangladesh it had been thought that more than 97% of the
population had access to safe drinking water until recently and because of detection of arsenic in
groundwater, the main source of drinking water in rural and urban areas, the access has come down
to 80%. The recent increase in rice production is also attributed to groundwater irrigation and
about 70% of irrigation water is abstracted from the aquifers, which account for 85% of the total
abstracted groundwater. The presence of arsenic in groundwater has become a major issue of man-
agement of both drinking and irrigation water in the country. Analysis of about 4 million wells by
field kit show that about one third of the wells exceed the BDWS of 50 ␮g/L. If the WHO provi-
sional guideline value, 10␮g/L, is considered two thirds of the wells become unsafe. About 30 to
70 million people are exposed to unsafe level of arsenic in their drinking water. Yet another potential
intake source remains unknown i.e. the entries through the food chain due to irrigation with arsenic
contaminated groundwater. Scientific investigations have demonstrated that arsenic contamination
does not occur randomly; rather geology and hydrogeology control it. Groundwater in Bangladesh
has never been considered as a precious resource; rather it has been used indiscriminately. For
management of arsenic in groundwater, a pragmatic mitigation policy is needed with a holistic
approach. Legal and institutional reforms are necessary to address the issue. Concepts of safe
drinking water and integrated water resources management should be adopted in order to manage
the problem scientifically. Proper assessment has to be performed to avoid substitution of new
risks while implementing new sources. Community participation has to be ensured in the man-
agement by raising the level of awareness about the quality and quantity of the vital resource.
1 INTRODUCTION
Bangladesh relies intensely on groundwater for rural and urban water supply and achieved
remarkable success in providing access to safe water to 97% of the population. Increased irriga-
tion coverage with groundwater contributing for more than 70% made the country safe reliant in

rice production, the staple food the 130 million people. The exponential increase in groundwater
exploitation has been prompted by easy availability and low cost technologies. The detection of
arsenic above admissible limits in shallow groundwater of Bangladesh has emerged as a severe
environmental hazard and the use of groundwater both for drinking and irrigation purposes being
questioned. Groundwater management is in poor state despite large dependence on groundwater.
The theme of this paper is management of groundwater for safe and sustainable use, mainly for
drinking purposes as it warrants the top priority among all uses.
1.1 Arsenic contamination situation
Since the first detection of arsenic in 1993, a number of studies have been carried out to determine
the extent of the problem. Until recently a large proportion of the country’s 8 to 10 million water
supply wells have been tested using field kits. At the same time, water samples from a relatively
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Natural Arsenic in Groundwater: Occurrence, Remediation and Management –
Bundschuh, Bhattacharya and Chandrasekharam (eds)
© 2005, Taylor & Francis Group, London, ISBN 04 1536 700 X
Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
small number of wells have also been analyzed using laboratory techniques. Field kit analysis of
about 4 million wells from 402 Upazilas (sub-district) out of about 500 reveal that about 30% of
the wells have arsenic above the Bangladesh drinking water standard (BDWS) of 0.05 mg/L (Fig.
1a). On the other hand, laboratory analyses of 44000 wells by various agencies show that 34%
wells yield water with more than 0.05 mg/L As (Fig. 1b).
Among the tested Upazilas there are extreme variations in the extent of occurrence of wells
with As above the BDWS – in some Upazilas almost all tested wells exceed the limit, in some
284
0
10
20
30
40
50

% of Tested Wells
< 0.01 0.01-0.05 > 0.05
Arsenic Concentrations (mg/L)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
BAMWSP
156
UNICEF &
Others 54
Full 210 DPHE 192 Total 402
Screened Upazila
% Tested Wells
<0.05 mg/L >0.05 mg/L
<0.05 mg/L >0.05 mg/L% of wells
020406080100
<50
>=50 to < 150
>=150 to < 250
>=250 to <500
>=500 to <750
>=750 to <1000
>=1000
Depth ranges (feet)
% of wells
Figure 1. (a) Percentage of wells exceeding BDWS under various field kit surveys (summary of about 4 mil-

lion tests); (b) Percentage of wells under different concentrations ranges (summary of 44,000 laboratory
analyses); (c) BAMWSP data from 66 upazila show that a larger proportion of wells from depth Ͼ500 feet
exceed the BDWS (Fig. 1c).
Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
other Upazilas none exceed the limit. However, there are distinct spatial patterns in occurrence as
shown in Figure 2. It is evident from the figure that significantly large proportions of wells located
in the southern sub-districts exceed the BDWS compared to the wells located in the north. It has
been reported by number of studies that spatial distribution of As occurrences is controlled by sur-
face geology, i.e. most wells located in the areas occupied by the fine and young floodplains and
deltaic sediments exceed BDWS more frequently, wells installed in Holocene coarse fan deposits
rarely exceed the BDWS and wells developed in Pleistocene and older never exceed the BDWS
(BGS & DPHE 2001, Ahmed et al. 2004). Also there is depth control in the occurrence of high As
in groundwater. The peak concentration occurs at 20–40 m, whereas aquifers above and below have
lower concentrations. BGS & DPHE (2001) reports that aquifers deeper than 150 m have consist-
ently low arsenic. Other studies report occurrence of low As water at shallower (van Geen et al. 2004)
and deeper depths (JICA 2003). However, BAMWSP data from 66 upazila show that a larger pro-
portion of wells from depth Ͼ500 feet exceed the BDWS (Fig. 1c). These findings are contradic-
tory to earlier studies and needs further investigation. It has been established from different studies
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Rivers
% of wells exceding 0.05 mg/L
0 - 1
1.1 - 20
20.1 - 40
40.1 - 60
60.1 - 80
80.1 - 100
No data
80 800 kilometers
Bay of Bengal

26°25°24°23°22°21°
26° 25° 24° 23° 22° 21°
88° 89° 90° 91° 92°
88° 89° 90° 91° 92°
Figure 2. Distribution of wells exceeding the BDWS for arsenic in different Upazilas (data from BAMWSP,
DPHE/UNICEF).
Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
that there is no specific depth for the occurrence of As safe water, rather it is controlled by the sub-
surface geology and hydrologic conditions (Ahmed 2003a).
1.2 Share of groundwater in water supply and irrigation
Groundwater has been the main element for two recent achievements of Bangladesh in the field of
access to safe water and food security. Due to extensive use of groundwater, facilitated by easy
availability of prolific aquifers, low-tech installation procedure and affordable cost, 97% of the
total population came under the safe water supply. The number of domestic water supply wells
increased many folds over last 3 decades and 90% of these are privately owned (van Geen et al.
2002). Groundwater is also the main sources of municipal water supplies in urban areas including
the capital city Dhaka. In fact Dhaka is one of the mega cities of the world, which rely almost
entirely on groundwater for water supply (Ahmed et al. 1999, Morris et al. 2003). The second suc-
cess that the country achieved recently is attaining self-sufficiency in rice production. This has
been made possible by the role of groundwater-based minor irrigation systems, which now accounts
for more than 75% of the total coverage. Though irrigation started in Bangladesh by using surface
water, the source has shifted from surface to groundwater as shown in Figure 3.
Both the successes have been posed with the recent threat due to As occurrences in groundwater.
As nearly 30% of the wells exceed the BDWS, the population previously considered to have access
to safe water is now known to be exposed to high As in their drinking water. Also the issue of
arsenic transfer through food chain due to irrigation with high As water is becoming a matter of
concern as many studies have reported arsenic buildup in soil and crops (Huq & Naidu 2003, Farid
et al. 2003).
1.3 Arsenic management issue
Occurrences of As above permissible limit have exposed millions of people to mass poisoning

(Smith et al. 2000). It is considered that the groundwater As catastrophe has emerged due to poor
or no management of drinking water sources in Bangladesh (Ahmed & Ravenscroft 2000). For the
last 5–6 years, there have been efforts to mitigate the problem but the pace of mitigation activities
does not match the extent and severity of the problem (Chakraborty et al. 2002). Various options
have been suggested and tested at various locations (van Geen et al. 2002, van Geen et al. 2003).
There are suggestions for a variety of mitigation options and strategies (WHO 2000, Hoque et al.
2000, GOB 2002, Yu et al. 2003, Alaerts & Khouri 2004). At the same time there are uncertainties
regarding various options which need further investigations before being applied (Burgess et al.
2002a, b, Cuthbert et al. 2002, Caldwell et al. 2003). Also the role of irrigation in the As mobiliza-
tion process is considered important (Harvey et al. 2002) and the food chain issues are becoming
286
75.10
76.32
75.33
74.96
24.90
23.68
24.67
25.04
35.57
37.66
38.5
40.08
2000
2001
2002
2003
Groundwater (%)
Surface Water (%) Total Area (Million Hectres)
Figure 3. Area covered by surface and groundwater irrigation (data from BADC irrigation census).

Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
more and more important (Huq & Naidu 2003). Therefore, one needs to consider both the water
supply and irrigation issues together while planning for As management in Bangladesh. The current
paper attempts to provide a preliminary risk assessment of different groundwater-based As-safe
sources based on limited data. At the same time a broader framework for groundwater manage-
ment in the country will be provided under the existing guidelines and policies. Also research
needs and local capacity building issues will be highlighted for sustainable management of
groundwater.
1.4 Hydrogeological setting of Bangladesh
Both the spatial and depth distribution of As occurrences in Bangladesh groundwater is controlled
by geological and hydrogeological factors. It is therefore important to provide a broad overview of
regional hydrogeology and groundwater occurrences. The country can be broadly divided into six
major hydrogeological units (Ahmed 2003b). However, if minor details are considered the number
of units increases up to 40 (UNDP 1982, MPO 1985). Figure 4 shows the major hydrogeological
zones of the country which are: Zone I – Holocene Piedmont Plains, Zone II – Holocene Deltaic-
and Flood-plains, Zone III – Pleistocene Terraces, Zone IV – Holocene Depressions, Zone
V – Tertiary Hills, and Zone VI – Holocene Coastal Plains. Aquifer conditions and quality of
groundwater vary significantly from unit to unit. Table 1 presents the major aquifer systems of the
country and it is evident that the thick sedimentary successions in the Bengal Basin form prolific
multi-layer aquifer systems. Thickness and lateral continuity of the different aquifers vary signifi-
cantly from zone to zone, i.e. the Plio-Pleistocene aquifer occurs at a depth of around 300m in the
coastal area, whereas the same aquifer occurs only at 10 to 30m in the Pleistocene Terraces.
2 OPTIONS FOR ARSENIC SAFE WATER
Various options are being suggested as sources of arsenic safe water involving use of rainwater,
surface water and groundwater (BRAC 2000, Hoque et al. 2000, van Geen et al. 2002, GOB 2002,
Yu et al. 2003, van Geen et al. 2003, GOB 2003, BRAC 2003, BRAC & WB 2003). The options
can be broadly classified under two groups viz. existing sources and new sources. Different
sources are briefly discussed in the following sections.
2.1 Use of existing sources
2.1.1 Well switching

It has come out from arsenic test results in various areas of Bangladesh that there is enormous
variability in spatial distribution of arsenic from district to village scales. In some areas, like in the
districts of Chandpur, Lakshmipur, Comilla, Noakhali, Faridpur, Gopalganj, Shariatpur,
Munshiganj, almost all well water exceed the BDWS whereas over most of the country there is an
intimate association of safe and adjacent unsafe wells. In such areas one good option is to switch
the source of drinking water. It has been reported from one area where 52% wells exceed the
BDWS that almost 90% of the inhabitants live within 100 m of a safe well (van Geen et al. 2002).
In such settings public awareness and dissemination campaigns can motivate the people to share
the good wells with their neighbors. Monitoring becomes a crucial concern in this case, as it has
been suggested that arsenic concentrations should be expected to rise in the future, even at wells
that are currently safe (Burgess et al. 2002b).
2.2 Introduction of new sources
2.2.1 Surface water sources
People in Bangladesh used to drink surface water from rivers, ponds, canals etc. Groundwater was
introduced as drinking water in early 70s as thousands of people used to die every year due to
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water born diseases. As the tube well technology became very popular surface water sources have
been abandoned. At the same time safe surface water has also become a matter of concern due to
indiscriminate disposal of industrial and municipal wastes and overall poor sanitation condition in
the country. Under current conditions surface water is not consumable without treatment. As sur-
face water has been found mostly safe from arsenic, there are strong campaigns for use of surface
water as drinking water. Large-scale surface water treatment plants are operational in a number of
cities including Dhaka. Pond sand filters (PSF) are being considered as a source of safe water and
are being installed in various parts of the country (GOB 2003, BRAC 2003).
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Figure 4. (a) Major hydrogeological zones of Bangladesh; and (b) Schematic NS geological cross section
across western Bangladesh. Aquifers of the north: (a) Shallow Holocene fan deposits and (b) Deeper Plio-
Pleistocene fluvial deposits (both the aquifers are arsenic safe). Aquifers of the south: (1) Upper shallow
aquifer composed of Holocene fine to very fine sands (severely arsenic contaminated); (2) Intermediate

Holocene medium to coarse sand aquifer with occasional gravels (sparsely arsenic contaminated); (3) Lower
shallow Holocene fine to medium sand aquifer (mostly brackish water) and (4) Deep Plio-Pleistocene aquifer
(fresh, arsenic safe) (after Ahmed 2003b).
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2.2.2 Rainwater harvesting
Harvesting of rainwater is also considered as a source of arsenic safe water in Bangladesh, at least
during the monsoon months as there is abundant rainfall during this time (Ahmed 2003, GOB
2003, BRAC 2003).
2.2.3 Very shallow groundwater
Abstraction of groundwater in Bangladesh started with dug wells although they became almost
extinct due to the overwhelming increase in the number of tube wells over the last three decades.
It has been found in many places that dug well water contains arsenic at very low concentrations
even in the severely arsenic affected areas (BGS & DPHE 2001). The use of dug wells as a source
of arsenic safe water is being considered and various noble designs have been suggested to make
them safe (Ahmed 2003, GOB 2002, GOB 2003).
2.2.4 Deep groundwater
Use of deep safe groundwater is considered as one of the main options for As safe water supply
(Ahmed 2003, van Geen et al. 2003, Yu et al. 2003). Deeper groundwater is As safe all over
the country though the safe depth varies considerably from place to place, even at village scale
(BGS & DPHE 2001, JICA 2002, van Geen et al. 2003). Deep groundwater is the most popular
safe water option among the community (BRAC 2003; BRAC & WB 2003). It has been reported
that one deep well, if installed strategically, can serve a population of 500 within a catchment of
300 m radius (van Geen et al. 2003). Yu et al. (2003) conclude that if the 31% of the existing
wells exceeding the BDWS is replaced by deep wells, health effects related to drinking As rich
water can be reduced by 70%.
2.3 Relative risks of various sources
While introducing any new source of water, the relative risk of the options has to be considered.
Moreover, if not careful enough, a new risk might be substituted inadvertently while introducing
a new source – risk of As in Bangladesh drinking water is a classical example. While reducing the
risk of microbiological contaminants, As risk has been substituted inadvertently (Smith et al.

2000). Due to this now there are strong campaigns by some groups to return to surface water.
However, there are suggestions that the shifting from tube wells should be as limited as possible
by using the safe wells (Calddwell et al. 2003). The same study also concludes that the most urgent
need is not changing source of water but comprehensive national water testing providing essential
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Table 1. Aquifer systems of Bangladesh.
UNDP BGS & DPHE Aggarwal
1982 2001 et al. 2001 JICA 2002 GOB 2002 Arsenic status
Composite Upper shallow 1st aquifer Shallow aquifer Upper Holocene Shallowest part
aquifer aquifer (1st aquifer) aquifer uncontaminated;
lower part
contaminated
Middle Holocene Most severely
aquifer contaminated,
peak arsenic
concentrations
occur here
Main Lower shallow 2nd aquifer Middle aquifer Lower Holocene Least
aquifer aquifer (2nd aquifer) aquifer contaminated
Deep aquifer Deep aquifer 3rd aquifer Deep aquifer Plio-Pleistocene Uncontaminated
(3rd aquifer) aquifer
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information to households about the safe and unsafe wells. Moreover, the potential exposure to As
sources other than drinking water make risk assessment of arsenic in drinking water difficult
(Buchet & Lison 2000). Therefore, one has to be extremely careful in recommending alternative source
of drinking water without assessing the relative risks and possible exposure through other sources.
All the different sources considered for As safe water has different risks associated. It is not
possible at this stage to rank different options in the absence of various quantitative matrixes.
Therefore, the qualitative risk factors associated with various options are discussed here. Also find-
ings from different studies with various options are considered in assessing the risks (Sutherland

et al. 2001, van Geen et al. 2002, van Geen et al. 2003, Burgess et al. 2002a, b, Cutbert et al. 2002,
Yu et al. 2003, BRAC 2003, BRAC & WB 2003, GOB 2003)
•
Well switching may give rise to social problems in sharing individually owned wells; larger
abstraction rate may influence the water quality; may not be suitably located for sharing by the
neighbors.
•
Removal efficiencies influenced by raw water chemistry; sludge disposal is a major issue – can
create other sources of exposures; household level management more difficult; not liked much
by the community.
•
Surface water sources have high risk of microbiological contamination; pond sand filter may not
remove all microorganisms; source protection is a major issue; not equally available in space and
time; can have other heavy metals from industrial wastes; reports of occurrences of toxins
derived from cyanobacteria; chemical and microbiological quality can vary abruptly in response
to flow conditions and land use practices; not considered as the best option by the community.
•
Rainwater is unequally distributed in time; storage is a major issue; quality deterioration during
long-term storage is a matter of concern; long-term consumption can lead to element defi-
ciency; not liked by the community.
•
Dug wells can not be developed under all types of geological and hydrogeological conditions;
there are risks of microbiological contamination if not well protected and placed at safe dis-
tances from existing sources of pollutions; there are reports of As occurrences above the
BDWS; other chemical parameters such as nitrate and manganese can also be limiting factors;
can become dry during drought/low water table conditions; not considered as a best option by
the community.
•
Deep tube wells can have arsenic and other chemical contaminants in some areas; can induce
leakage of As rich water from upper aquifers if pumping rate is high; poor construction can

result into short circuiting of arsenic rich water; arsenic may be released from aquifer sediments
under changed hydrogeochemical conditions imposed by new pumping regimes; possibilities of
resource depletion if abstraction is not regulated.
It is evident from the discussions above that none of the option is risk free. In selecting a particu-
lar option one needs to consider the relative microbiological and chemical quality factors along
side sustainability, affordability and acceptability by the community. Community options rather
than household options should get priority for the ease of management and monitoring. Use of
deep or safe community wells seems to be the most practical option available to reduce the arsenic
exposure, also this is most liked by the community (van Geen et al. 2003, Yu et al. 2003, BRAC &
WB 2003). If piped water systems are introduced in smaller urban centers and rural areas, as out-
lined in the arsenic mitigation policy of the government, the same source can be used.
3 MANAGEMENT OF ARSENIC ENRICHED GROUNDWATER
The issue of arsenic management is very wide and includes management of water resources,
sources of water supplies, provision of alternative sources, health aspects, social aspects, agricul-
tural issues etc. Though all these are important and one can not speak of arsenic management
without a holistic approach, many of the issues are outside the subject matter of the paper. And,
therefore, the issue of arsenic enriched groundwater management is highlighted here.
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3.1 Arsenic in existing national policies
In Bangladesh there are number of modern policies which can be utilized in management of As
enrichment of groundwater. The policies adopted prior to detection of arsenic naturally do not
address the issue. However, the recently adopted policies address the issue and the most relevant ones
are the National Policy for Safe Water Supply & Sanitation 1998 and National Water Policy 1999.
These two policies lay the foundation of groundwater management in the country. A new policy
focusing only of arsenic, National Arsenic Mitigation Policy 2004, has been adopted recently by the
council of ministers. Also National Environmental Policy and National Environment Management
Action Plan 1992 can be used to introduce relevant legal instruments for arsenic management.
National Policy for Safe Water Supply & Sanitation 1998: The policy sets a goal for the gov-
ernment to ensure that all people have access to safe water and sanitation services at affordable

cost. In the policy document safe water supply is defined as ‘means of withdrawal or abstraction
of either ground or surface water as well as harvesting rainwater water, its subsequent treatment,
storage, transmission and distribution for domestic use”. The goals and objectives includes,
among various other issues, reduction of incidence of water borne disease, ensuring supply of
quality water through observance of accepted quality standards and removal of arsenic from drink-
ing water and supply of arsenic free water from alternative sources in arsenic affected areas. The
strategy of the policy is set to development goals based on a number of principles including prece-
dence on safe water from surface sources. The strategy also emphasizes on regular and coord-
inated water quality surveillance to controlling and preventing contamination of drinking water.
The policy asks for excavation or re-excavation and preservation of at least one pond in each and
every villages of Bangladesh with necessary security measures to prevent water of the pond from
contamination. For urban water supplies it also emphasizes on monitoring of water quality for the
purpose of ensuring an acceptable standard.
National Water Policy 1999: The national water policy is declared “to ensure continued
progress towards fulfilling the national goals of economic development, poverty alleviation, food
security, public health and safety, decent standard of living for the people and protection of nat-
ural environment”. The policy will guide management of water resources of the country by all
concerned agencies. The policy states “the ownership of water does not vest in an individual but
in the state. The Government reserves the right to allocate water to ensure equitable distribution,
efficient development and use, and to address poverty”.
Under the water supply and sanitation section the policy identify number of problems related to
groundwater, viz. arsenic contamination, heavy withdrawals for irrigation and subsequent decline
in water table, seepage of agrochemicals into shallow aquifers, and salinity intrusion. On the other
hand, in the water and agriculture section, it encourages future groundwater development for irri-
gation subject to regulations prescribed by the government from time to time and without affect-
ing drinking water supplies. It also emphasizes strengthening monitoring organizations for
tracking groundwater recharge, surface and groundwater use, and changes in surface and ground-
water quality. The policy talks about research, central database and enactment of a national water
code revising and consolidating the laws governing ownership, development, appropriation, util-
ization, conservation, and protection of water resources.

3.2 Institutions involved
In Bangladesh there are a large number of organisations involved in water resources development
and management. However, currently most of these organisations develop water only, very little
management is done. The National Water Policy outlines the institutional arrangements for future
integrated water resources management in the country. The Ministry of Water Resources is the
focal point in the public sector for water resources management. However, the arsenic issue is cur-
rently considered mainly as a water supply issue and therefore, the Ministry of Local Government
has been made the focal ministry. The other ministries involved are Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare, Ministry of Water Resources, Ministry of Agriculture, and Ministry of Science and
Information Technology. There is a high power secretarial committee to co-ordinate the activities
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of different ministries in this field. Apart from government organizations (Table 2), various
research organizations, non-government organizations, development partners, international
organizations are also involved. The involvement of so many stakeholders in the issue makes it
very complicated and co-ordinated efforts may become difficult.
3.3 Mitigation strategy
Though there are various options of safe water available, the mitigation efforts implemented so far
is insignificant compared to the magnitude of the problem. This, to some extent, is due to lack of
a mitigation strategy. There are various suggestions regarding the mitigation strategy (GOB 2002,
Nuruzzaman & Ahmed 2003, Alaerts & Khouri 2004). All these suggest various approaches for
arsenic mitigation encompassing water supply, health, social and food chain issues. However, the
recently adopted National Arsenic Mitigation Policy will be considered as the main instrument for
managing the big problem. The main policy statements included in the policy are:
•
access to arsenic-safe water for drinking and cooking will be ensured;
•
all patients will be managed effectively;
•
public awareness will be raised about impact of arsenic contaminated water;

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Table 2. Major government organizations involved in arsenic enriched groundwater management.
Sl no. Organization Main role Role in arsenic
1 Department of Public Health Providing water supply and Testing water sources, finding
Engineering (DPHE) sanitation all over the country new sources, providing new
except two major cities sources
2 Bangladesh Arsenic Specifically raised to deal Testing wells, disseminating
Mitigation Water Supply with arsenic mitigation results, providing
Project (BAMWSP) arsenic safe water
3 Bangladesh Water Monitoring of water resources, Investigation of arsenic source
Development Board development of surface water, in sediments
(BWDB) and to some extent ground water
4 Bangladesh Atomic Energy Use of nuclear technology Use of isotope hydrology in
Commission (BAEC) managing arsenic enriched
groundwater
5 Geological Survey of Preparing geological maps, Aquifer mapping
Bangladesh (GSB) conducting geological
exploration
6 Bangladesh Council for Conducting applied research Validation of arsenic test kits and
Scientific and Industrial for developing new removal technologies
Research (BCSIR) technologies
7Water Resources Planning Preparing water resources Integration of issue of arsenic in
Organization (WARPO) master plan for the country overall water resources
management
8 Bangladesh Agricultural Providing support in the field Assessment of water resources
Development Corporation of agriculture and impact of arsenic on irrigated
(BADC) crops
9 Bangladesh Institute of Application of nuclear Impact of arsenic in food chain
Nuclear Agriculture (BINA) technology in agriculture
10 Bangladesh Rice Research Development of rice Impact of arsenic in food chain

Institute (BRRI)
Copyright © 2005 Taylor & Francis Group plc, London, UK
•
capacity will be built at all levels for implementation of mitigation options, surveillance and
monitoring of water quality and diagnosis and management of patients;
•
impact of arsenic on agriculture will be assessed.
Although the policy gives priority to all the major issues related to arsenic it could be made more
pragmatic. The issues which should are important in setting long term goal for arsenic manage-
ment are discussed in the following sections.
3.4 Requirements for sustainable management
3.4.1 Concept of safe drinking water
In the arsenic mitigation policy emphasis has been given on arsenic safe water but one should
introduce the safe water concept. In Bangladesh drinking water safety is often determined based
on single or few parameters, e.g. in the past microbiological contaminants were the most focused
parameter. It is unrealistic for any water supply system to consider one or two parameters. All the
health sensitive parameters should be considered while introducing a new source of drinking water
and at the same time all existing sources should be checked for all parameters.
3.4.2 Reliable testing facilities
One major issue in the field of drinking water arsenic occurrence is reliable detection at the
desired levels. Hundreds of thousands dollars have been spent in testing all existing water sources
in the arsenic prone areas by field kits. There are strong reservations about the reliability of such
kits. However, recent experiences show that the kits are good in delineating the overall pattern of
occurrences. Also the kits can detect wells exceeding the BDWS. It is important to have reliable
testing facilities available a village levels.
3.4.3 Legal aspects
Although there are number of policies regarding water management, safe drinking water and
arsenic management, there are no legal bindings for the water supply authorities to ensure quality
of supply. It is important to introduce a “Safe Drinking Water Act” under which health-based stand-
ards can be set to protect drinking water from naturally occurring and anthropogenic contam-

inants. This act, like the US SDWA (EPA 1999), can ensure the right to know what is in the
drinking water. Also this can make provisions so that all water suppliers notify consumers quickly
when there is any problem with the water quality.
3.4.4 National monitoring
Although it is mentioned in the major national policies, the water supply systems in Bangladesh
lack a systematic national surveillance and quality monitoring. It is argued that if there has been
such a monitoring, the arsenic problem might have abated much earlier (Ahmed & Ravenscroft,
2000). There is a national monitoring system currently run by BWDB, which is too small com-
pared to the number of drinking water sources. BADC has also some monitoring focused more on
agricultural uses. It is therefore very important to immediately develop a national water quality
monitoring and surveillance under DPHE. Monitoring systems of BWDB and BADC can feed in
additional information to the proposed monitoring.
3.4.5 Research and training
There are number of gaps in the understanding of the arsenic problem and needs advanced
research. More applied research is needed to fill in the knowledge gap. Overall, there is shortfall
of trained personnel for water resources management. Training should be given to stakeholders in
all levels for efficient management of drinking water sources in particular.
3.4.6 Local capacity building
Personnel working in relevant government organizations and NGOs need basic hydrogeological
training. Strengthening of university departments and training organizations is an important
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aspect of local capacity building. Not only this, there are lack of local capacity in many other areas
of water resources management. Enhancement of local capacity is a key issue for sustainable man-
agement of water resources.
3.4.7 Access to information
Access to information is a fundamental right to water users. However, it is very difficult under cur-
rent system. BAMWSP has a arsenic management data base center to cater with all information
needs in the field of testing and mitigation. However, the access is very limited and should be
expanded at village levels.

3.4.8 Public awareness
The current level of awareness regarding arsenic in groundwater is generally not very high (BRAC
2003). However, it is also found that people respond quickly as the information is disseminated
and new sources are introduced (van Geen et al. 2003). Overall, people perception about water
need to be changed. Water, in most cases, is not considered as an important natural resource and a
commodity. Media can play a major role in creating awareness about quality and quantity of water
resources.
3.4.9 Role of private sector
Currently about 90% of the water sources are privately installed and owned. It is therefore, very
important to involve the private sector in all water management issues.
3.4.10 Organizational reform
Currently there are many organizations involved in the field of water resources development.
However, there is no organization solely responsible for management of groundwater resources of
the country. Groundwater is very important in Bangladesh and socio-economic developments are
very much driven by the use of the hidden resource. It is very important to create an organization
to manage the vital resource.
4 CONCLUSIONS
Management of arsenic rich groundwater is a big challenge for Bangladesh. The magnitude of the
problem is very big where about one third of the existing wells exceed the current BDWS.
Groundwater has been playing major role in providing access to safe drinking water and ensuring
food security since the emergence of Bangladesh. There are currently moves to stop use of this
strategic resource. It is not realistic and groundwater should play a vital role again in providing
alternative sources of safe water. Proper groundwater management is needed along with national
water quality monitoring and surveillance. Holistic approach should be taken to manage the
arsenic issue. This would need major steps to be taken in the field of local capacity building, organ-
izational reform and legal instrumentations. Concepts of safe drinking water rather than arsenic
safe drinking water have to be adopted. While introducing a new source one needs to take every
possible measures not to substitute a new risk. Public awareness about the quantity and quality of
groundwater should be raised. Citizen’s right to access to information about water quality has to
be ensured. Arsenic mitigation should be made part of the overall water resources management.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I gratefully acknowledge the help of M. Ashraf Ali Seddique and M. Abdul Hoque for their help
with the figures. Thanks also due to Dr. Willy Burgess for his review comments.
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