Arsenic contamination and potential health risk to primary school children through drinking water sources

Abstract

Arsenic exposure through drinking water is a serious public health concern in the southern province of Pakistan. Little information on As exposure to children at school settings is available in Pakistan. The current study aimed to assess arsenic contamination through drinking water sources and estimate its health risk to the children, the potentially malnourished Pakistan population. We used risk assessment models to estimate the hazard quotient index and lifetime cancer risk. Spatial data analysis methods were used to investigate the spatial pattern of As contamination and its relationship with the area's hydrogeology. Across the 423 sampled schools, the drinking water exceeded the WHO permissible limits (19.6% for arsenic and 15% for iron). The arsenic's average incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) exceeded the USEPA permissible limit. The arsenic hotspots were mainly located in the central districts. The present study's findings elaborate that the reduction is the controlling phenomenon in the lower Indus basin in the active flood plains, which is the primary source of fresh groundwater in Sindh and pH-induced dissolution is the second phenomenon observed only in the irrigated area, especially at the boundary of the hotspots. These findings are helpful to inform policymakers on measures to ensure prior treatment of As in the drinking water for the schools in areas adjacent to the riverbank.

Keywords:

• Arsenic hotspots
• water quality
• health risk
• primary school children
• river Indus

Acknowledgments

The researchers want to acknowledge USAID for providing financial support through USPCASW Seed Grant, Division of Public Health, University of Utah, and Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Nevada, Reno, for technical support. Lastly, the US-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology for giving a platform to accomplish this research project.

Data availability statement

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that there are no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

The study was funded by United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under seed grant number: USPCASW/P-II/07.