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Hydrogeochemical controls on mobilization of arsenic and associated health risk in Nagaon district of the central Brahmaputra Plain, India

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Abstract

In recent years, elevated concentration of arsenic (As) in groundwater in the northeastern states of India has become a major cause of concern. Since many regions of the Brahmaputra plains are reported with groundwater As contamination, an attempt was made to study the As contamination and factors governing its release in the Nagaon district in Brahmaputra floodplain, based on various water types, relation of As with other major ions and with various depth profiles. The origin of groundwater mineralization and the processes responsible for As enrichment in groundwater was determined by calculating saturation index using PHREEQC code. Multivariate statistical analysis was carried out for identification of As-releasing mechanism based on rock–water interaction. Principle component analysis of physicochemical parameters revealed the association of As with SiO2 and Cl− in pre-monsoon and the fact that alkaline condition favors release of As. The relation between As and Fe shows that reductive dissolution of solid Fe oxide and hydroxide phases could be the source of As in Nagaon district. The result of hierarchical cluster analysis indicates that As release could also be associated with the agrochemicals application. Health risk assessment revealed that children are more susceptible to carcinogenic as well as non-carcinogenic health impact with consumption of As-contaminated drinking water. The male population is more susceptible to cancer as compared to females as the average water consumption is higher in case of male. Overall, the study highlights the health risk assessment is a matter of chief concern in this study as the younger generation are at higher risk.

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Acknowledgments

This work is funded by Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), the Department of Science and Technology (DST), under the Govt. India under the Fast Track Young Scientist Scheme awarded to Dr. Manish Kumar (SR/TP/ES-32/2012). We acknowledge the meticulous remarks of the referee which made the final version possible.

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  1. Department of Environmental Science, Tezpur University, Napaam, Assam, 784028, India

    Manish Kumar, Arbind Kumar Patel, Aparna Das, Ritusmita Goswami, Parismita Deka & Nilotpal Das

  2. United Nations University, Institute for the Advanced Study of Sustainability (UNU-IAS), 5-53-70, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, 150-8925, Japan

    Pankaj Kumar

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  1. Manish Kumar
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Manish Kumar and Arbind Kumar Patel are joint first author.

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Kumar, M., Patel, A.K., Das, A. et al. Hydrogeochemical controls on mobilization of arsenic and associated health risk in Nagaon district of the central Brahmaputra Plain, India. Environ Geochem Health 39, 161–178 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-016-9816-2

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