Effectiveness of Tubewell platform color as screening tool for arsenic and manganese in drinking water wells: An assessment from Matlab region Southeastern Bangladesh.

• Main Author: Annaduzzaman, Md
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: KTH, Mark- och vattenteknik (flyttat 20130630) 2012
• Subjects: Bangladesh; Groundwater; Arsenic; Manganese; Tube-well; Platform color
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:kth:diva-124582

Arsenic (As) contamination in groundwater is a severe and adverse water quality issue for drinking purposes, particularly in Southeast Asia, where groundwater is the main drinking water source. Bangladesh is one of the countries where arsenic poisoning in groundwater is massive and it is essential to find out a reliable alternative safe drinking water source. In this process, it is very much needed to identify As-rich wells to avoid drinking water from them and to assess the extent of contamination as well. This study attempts to evaluate the potentiality of tube-well (TW) platform color as low-cost quick screening tool for As and Mn as well in drinking water wells (n=272). The result shows strong association of red color platform with As-rich water in the corresponding wells compared to WHO guideline value of 10 μg/L (98.7% certainty) and regional (Bangladesh/India) standard of 50 μg/L (98.3% certainty). The sensitivity and efficiency of red color platforms to screen high As water in TW for 10 μg/L are 98% and 97%. Similarly, for 50 μg/L, it is 98% for both sensitivity and efficiency. However, because of a very low number (n=4) of TW platform stained with black color, it is not possible to make any conclusion on the potentiality of black color as a screening tool for Mn. This study suggests that red colored platform can be potentially used for primary identification of TWs with elevated As concentration and to prioritise sustainable As mitigation management. However, this study does not discard the concept of black colored platform as a screening tool for Mn-rich water. Further study is recommended to evaluate the efficiency of black color as a screening tool for Mn.