Tubewell platform color as a screening tool for arsenic in shallow drinking water wells in Bangladesh

Tubewell platform color as a screening tool for arsenic in shallow drinking water wells in Bangladesh

The development of a simple and low cost technique for determination of arsenic (As) in drinking water wells is an urgent need to accelerate As mitigation policy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potentiality of tubewell platform color as low-cost, quick and convenient screening tool for As. The result shows strong correlation between the development of red color stain on tubewells platform and As enrichment in the corresponding tubewells water compared to WHO (10 μg/L) and BDWS (50 μg/L), with 99% certainty. The red color stain in the platform indicates 98% sensitivity with WHO (10 μg/L) and BDWS (50 μg/L). With regard to WHO and BDWS, the corresponding efficiency of the platform color as screening tool for As are 97.3% and 97%. This study suggests that platform color can be potentially used for screening tubewells, help users switch to tube wells with low As and facilitate sustainable As mitigation efforts in developing countries.

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