By Pauline L. Smedley and David G. Kinniburgh
ESI Special Topics,
December 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/2003/december03-Smedley_Kinniburgh.html
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Pauline L. Smedley and David G. Kinniburgh
answer a
few questions about this month's fast breaking paper in the field of
Geosciences.
From
•>>December 2003
Field:
Geosciences
Article Title: A review of the source, behaviour and distribution of arsenic in natural waters
Authors: Smedley,
PL;Kinniburgh, DG
Journal: APPL GEOCHEM
Volume: 17
Page: 517-568
Year: MAY 2002
* British Geol Survey, Wallingford OX10 8BB, Oxon, England.
* British Geol Survey, Wallingford OX10 8BB, Oxon, England.
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 Why
do you think your paper is highly cited?
The significance of arsenic in water, especially groundwater,
has increased enormously in recent years following discoveries
of serious health problems in populations affected by it and the
recent lowering of national and international limits for arsenic
in drinking water. It is only recently that the scale of arsenic
contamination in natural waters has become widely recognized.
Today, problems with arsenic in water are being discovered in
many countries throughout the  world.
The numbers of people working on environmental arsenic have
multiplied in recent years and publications on arsenic in the
environment have increased dramatically. Our review has
therefore proved topical and timely.
Does
it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to
others?
No, but we have summarized the available information and put
the known world occurrences of arsenic problems into a
geochemical context. There are now recognized to be several
distinct mechanisms of arsenic release into groundwater and the
review classifies affected regions in terms of these mechanisms.
We have identified young (Quaternary) sedimentary aquifers as a
key risk factor in some of the world's worst cases of arsenic
contamination. However, much remains unknown about the source,
mobilization, and transport of arsenic in groundwater.
Could
you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?
We have provided a review of a large amount of disparate
information on arsenic in groundwater and the environment that
should help those involved in research on the groundwater
arsenic problem and those having to deal with it. Our review
emphasizes the fact that groundwater arsenic problems can be
derived naturally from ordinary sediments that are not
contaminated by mining or industry. This was not widely
appreciated a decade ago.
How
did you become involved in this research?
We have had a long-term interest in trace-element processes
in water and soil and in the relationship between environmental
trace elements and health. We have been involved in research
projects on arsenic—including studies in Ghana, Argentina,
Bangladesh, China, and the UK—for the last 10 years.
Pauline Smedley and David Kinniburgh
British Geological Survey
Wallingford, UK
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ESI Special Topics,
December 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/2003/december03-Smedley_Kinniburgh.html
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