Testing Tubewell Platform Color as a Rapid Screening Tool for Arsenic and Manganese in Drinking Water Wells

摘要

A low-cost rapid screening tool for arsenic (As) and manganese (Mn) in groundwater is urgently needed to formulate mitigation policies for sustainable drinking water supply. This study attempts to make statistical comparison between tubewell (TW) platform color and me level of As and Mn concentration in ground-water extracted from the respective TW (n = 423), to validate platform color as a screening tool for As and Mn in groundwater. The result shows that a black colored platform with 73% certainty indiratra that well water is safe from As, while with 84% certainty a red colored platform indicates that well water is enriched with As, compared to WHO drinking water guideline of 10 μg/L. With this guideline the efficiency, sensitivity, and specincityofthe tool are 79%, 77%, and 81%, respectively. However, the certainty values become 93% and 38%, respectively, for Hack and red colored platforms at 50 μg/L, the drinking water standards for India and Bangladesh. The respective efficiency, sensitivity, and specificity are 6596,85%, and 59%. Similarly for Mn, black and red colored platform with 78% and 64% certainty, respectively, indicates that weD water is either enriched or free from Mn at me Indian national drinking water standard of 300μg/L. With this guideline the efficiency, sensitivity, and specificyty of the tod are 71%, 67%, and 76%, respectively. Thus, this smdy demonstrates that TW platform color can be potentially used as an initial screening tool for identifying TWs with elevated dissolved As and Mn, to make further rigorous groundwater testing more mtensive and implement mitigation options for safe drinking water suppbes.