Effect of agro-activities on drinking-water quality in Bangladesh
by Janil Bin Alam, Anil Kumar Dikshit, Manas Bandyopadhyay
International Journal of Water (IJW), Vol. 1, No. 2, 2001

Abstract: Fifty-nine samples of drinking water were collected from various locations in Bangladesh to assess the impact of agricultural practices on groundwater quality. The basic groundwater quality parameters, such as pH, total dissolved solids, iron, sodium, chloride, sulfate, fluoride and arsenic were analysed. In addition, the presence of excess fertilizers was monitored by measuring levels of ammonium, nitrate, phosphate and potassium, and the presence of excess pesticides by measuring levels of endrin, heptachlor and DDT. The results were evaluated on the basis of drinking-water quality standards for Bangladesh as well as WHO and EC standards. Water samples were found to contain relatively high concentrations of ammonium, nitrate and iron. The ranges of the organochlorine pesticides heptachlor and DDT were 0.025-0.789 mg/l and 0.010-1.527 mg/l, respectively. Two samples violated the allowable limits for heptachlor, seven for DDT. The presence of low levels of persistent pesticides at certain locations, along with higher than normal levels of ammonium and nitrate clearly demonstrates that agro-chemicals have influenced the water quality of groundwater sources in Bangladesh.

Online publication date: Fri, 15-Aug-2003

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.

Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Water (IJW):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

Username:        Password:          Forgotten your password?

Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.

If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com