Geology and Health

Solving the Arsenic Crisis in Asia and the Pacific Region

2-4 May 2001

By financing the initial tubewell drilling in the 1970s, the international donors saved millions from surface water-borne diseases. Ironically, the same donors are now often depicted as the culprits having caused discomfort and death due to arsenic poisoning. It would be best to view the groundwater exploitation of the last two decennia as a first step. The next step is to endorse a permanent solution based on now available knowledge, ensuring a water supply free of arsenic contamination.

Since all stakeholders (authorities, researchers, national institutions, international organizations, potential donors) should first agree on the best way forward, ESCAP is organizing the conference in collaboration with other international organizations, notably UNICEF, WHO, UNIDO, IAEA, the UN University, etc. to review available knowledge and reach a consensus on a possible permanent solution (see background). At the same time, countries as yet unaffected but underlain by deltaic sediments will be forewarned and enabled to safeguard their populations against similar suffering.

A technician from the department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE), testing tube well water for the presence of Arsenic in Sonargaon, Bangladesh (Photograph courtesy, UNICEF/Shahzad Noorani)

• Arsenic poisoning through drinking water from groundwater sources

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