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Water and Sanitation in the New Millennium pp 71–80Cite as

Pesticides, Heavy Metals, and Fluoride Contamination of Groundwater Sources: Global and National Perspective

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Abstract

An essential requirement of a healthy life is safe drinking water; unfortunately around 1200 million people worldwide and around 125 million in India do not have access to same [1]. Waterborne diseases continue to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality in many parts of the developing world, and the most affected population is children. Supply of adequate quantities of drinking water to ever-increasing population continues to be a challenge in India and many developing countries. Surface waters, such as water bodies, rivers, ponds, and natural or man-made reservoirs, and groundwater are the main sources of drinking water in rural and urban settings. Water sources contain natural contaminants, particularly inorganic, as water flows through the geological strata, as well as contaminants from anthropogenic sources. Groundwater is a critical resource in India, as over 65% of water used for irrigation and 85% of water for human consumption are sourced from groundwater, particularly in rural areas. Generally, the groundwater is less vulnerable to pollution as compared to surface waters, yet groundwater contamination has been associated with severe diseases such as skin lesions, cancer, and other ailments arising from ingestion of water containing arsenic and dental and skeletal fluorosis from water containing fluoride in more than the permissible limits. Being geogenic, the groundwater chemical contamination is restricted to specific areas, but it affects large populations and is a significant public health problem in many parts of the world. WHO has provided guidelines for drinking water, and relevant agencies of most countries have prescribed the acceptable or permissible levels for chemical and microbial contaminants in water which are revised from time to time. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has prescribed the acceptable levels of chemical and microbial contaminants which are also revised from time to time.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Indian Institute for Toxicology Research (IITR), Sector G, Jankipuram, Kursi Road, Lucknow, 226021, Uttar Pradesh, India

    Prahlad K. Seth

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  1. Prahlad K. Seth
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Correspondence to Prahlad K. Seth .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Former Director, All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health, GOI, Kolkata, India

    K..J. Nath

  2. Centre for Rural Development and Technology, Indian Institute of Technology, Hauz Khas, New Delhi, India

    Vinod Prakash Sharma

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Seth, P.K. (2017). Pesticides, Heavy Metals, and Fluoride Contamination of Groundwater Sources: Global and National Perspective. In: Nath, K., Sharma, V. (eds) Water and Sanitation in the New Millennium. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-3745-7_7

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