Arsenic water

A recent study published in the academic journal ‘Science Advances’ estimates that as many as 50 million Pakistanis may be at risk of arsenic poisoning from the consumption of contaminated groundwater. While the sample size of the study, which tested water quality from about 1,200 groundwater pumps, was small and so has a large margin of error, the data should still be reason to panic.     Pakistan is already very generous in the level of arsenic it allows in water, permitting 50 micrograms per litre while the international standard is 10 micrograms. But even by our own lenient standards, at least one quarter of the population may be consuming water that is deadly. That the government cannot supply its people clean drinking water – a basic human right – is entirely due to greed. The reason arsenic has polluted our water to such dangerous levels is because the industrial sector has been allowed to exploit all our resources without having to clean up after themselves. The absence of environmental laws and the lack of will to enforce those laws which are on the books have brought us to this point. Already the country is on the precipice of a water crisis. To find out that the little water we do have could be too dangerous to consume makes the crisis even worse.

The consumption of arsenic can cause a public health crisis as those who drink affected water are more likely to develop cancer and suffer the effects of arsenic poisoning. Removing arsenic from the water supply is relatively simple as water treatment plants can use large biochar filters to extract the arsenic. The government can also educate the public and hand out smaller filters for personal use. Before doing that, though, it has to acknowledge its culpability in bringing about this crisis. It is only because successive governments have put the capriciousness of industry over our human rights that arsenic has polluted our water. Further safety studies should now be carried out to find out what other pollutants may be in our water. There will be a temptation for the government to either ignore the news or dispute its findings. Should it do so, that would only prove that it still has its head in the sand. Our polluted water is a ticking time bomb that could explode at any time.