Drinking Water Engineering and Science Discussions www.drink-water-eng-sci-discuss.net 1996-9473 1996-9481 2 1 2009 10.5194/dwesd-2-51-2009 http://www.drink-water-eng-sci-discuss.net/2/51/2009/ http://www.drink-water-eng-sci-discuss.net/2/51/2009/dwesd-2-51-2009.html http://www.drink-water-eng-sci-discuss.net/2/51/2009/dwesd-2-51-2009.pdf 51 64 2009-02-26 Arsenic in drinking water: not just a problem for Bangladesh D. van Halem d.vanhalem@tudelft.nl S. A. Bakker G. L. Amy J. C. van Dijk Delft University of Technology, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Stevinweg 1, 2628 CN Delft, The Netherlands UNESCO-IHE, Westvest 7, 2611 AX Delft, The Netherlands For more than a decade it has been known that shallow tube wells in Bangladesh are frequently contaminated with arsenic concentrations at a level that is harmful to human health. By now it is becoming clear that a disaster of an unheard magnitude is going on: the World Health Organization fears that in the near future 1 in every 10 adult deaths in Bangladesh will be caused by arsenic-related cancers. Other studies show that problems with arsenic in groundwater/drinking water occur in many more countries worldwide, such as in the USA and China. In Europe the focus on arsenic problems is confined to countries with high arsenic levels in their groundwater, such as Romania, Hungary and Italy. In most other European countries, the naturally occurring arsenic concentrations are lower than the drinking water standard of 10 μg L^−1. However, from the literature review presented in this paper, it may also be concluded that using the European standard, health risks cannot be excluded. It is therefore recommended that the current arsenic standard be reconsidered. 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