Climate breakdown will put tens of millions of people in Bangladesh at heightened risk of cancer from contaminated well water, according to research, reports theguardian.com. Sea level rises, unpredictable flooding and extreme weather caused by the climate heating up will accelerate the release of dangerous levels of arsenic into the country’s drinking water, say scientists. The result, the researchers say, will be an intensification of a public health crisis already gripping the country, where millions have skin, bladder and lung cancers as a result of arsenic poisoning. Wells in about 49% of areas contained drinking water that exceeded the maximum WHO limit of 10 parts per billion, Frisbie said. During his fieldwork, Frisbie tested water from one well with an arsenic concentration of 448 parts per billion.

Source: The Guardian January 19, 2024 06:26 UTC