Level of Arsenic in Ground Water and Its Impact on Human Health: A Case Study of Bahawalpur City, Pakistan
Paper Details
Level of Arsenic in Ground Water and Its Impact on Human Health: A Case Study of Bahawalpur City, Pakistan
Abstract
Access to clean and pure drinking water is basic human right. Poor drinking water quality causes many diseases including Cancer (Lung, Liver, Skin, and Kidney Cancer). The major goals of this study are to measure level of arsenic in groundwater and to find the relation of arsenic level in drinking water and water borne diseases in Bahawalpur City. This research work was based on both primary and secondary data. A cross sectional study was designed to check the drinking water quality and the spatial pattern of selected water borne disease (cancer). Groundwater samples were collected from 42 areas of the city of Bahawalpur. These samples were analyzed in PCRWR laboratory for Arsenic level. The data of cancer patients were obtained from the District Head Quarter Hospital and the patient’s locations were marked by their addresses on Google maps. Water quality data and health data analysis through GIS techniques, Interpolation, IDW (inverse distance weighted), kernel density were used for diseases pattern and results were presented through maps. The results showed that the level of Arsenic was higher (55 to 80 ppb) than WHO standard (50 ppb). It has been observed that the drinking water quality has affected the public health as there were 319 Cancer patients. This study revealed that people were using As-contaminated groundwater for drinking purposes that caused water-borne diseases. There is an insistent need for a practical solution to supply the fine quality drinking water in the Bahawalpur City.
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Mehwish Rani, Muhammad Mushahid Anwar, Rab Nawaz, Asad Aziz, Najam Zaheer, Nusrat Ehsan, Muhammad Umair (2016), Level of Arsenic in Ground Water and Its Impact on Human Health: A Case Study of Bahawalpur City, Pakistan; JBES, V8, N6, June, P197-204
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