Geochemical Controls on the Efficiency of Remediation Technologies for Arsenic, Fluoride & Emerging Contaminants in South Asian Groundwaters (GeoCERT)

安全饮用水供应的可获得性与全球公共健康、福祉和经济繁荣密切相关。由于自然和/或人为作用，地下水中可能存在砷、氟化物和新出现的有机污染物等化学危害，这些危害可能威胁饮用水供应的安全。在用水之前，可以利用各种技术减少接触可能存在的化学和微生物污染物的水的修复或处理。然而，有效实施补救办法可能具有挑战性，特别是在没有或无法获得集中式、经过处理的管道供水的地区。适当补救办法的最佳选择和管理可能具有挑战性，因为不同类型补救技术的适用性不同，以及地球化学条件、社会经济和监管背景、风险权衡以及与决策支持相关的数据(例如，补救效率测试、当地地球化学条件)的可得性存在差异。该项目的目的是通过确定市场上可用的地下水补救技术的效率与水源水化学之间的关系来帮助解决其中一些挑战，以帮助在南亚的背景下支持最佳选择补救战略。在我们最近和正在进行的比哈尔邦研究的基础上，并与Mahavir Cancer Sansthan(印度巴特那)和墨尔本大学(澳大利亚墨尔本)的项目合作伙伴密切合作，我们将通过调查市场上可用的修复技术的性能来系统地解决这一目标，以去除地下水中的砷、氟化物和代表印度比哈尔邦发现的一系列成分的示例新兴有机污染物(三氯蔗糖)。以知识交流和影响为重点，我们将与我们的合作伙伴密切合作，以产生催化产出，包括报告关键结果的主要出版物、利益攸关方指导，以及提交进一步的建议，以便为南亚和全球南方其他地区的地下水修复开发强大的、数据知情的决策支持系统。

The accessibility of safe drinking water supplies is centrally linked to public health, well-being and economic prosperity globally. Chemical hazards, such as arsenic, fluoride and emerging organic contaminants, which may be present in groundwater due to natural and/or anthropogenic processes, can threaten the safety of drinking water supplies.Remediation, or treatment, of water can be undertaken, prior to water consumption, using a variety of technologies to reduce exposures to chemical and microbial contaminants which may be present. However, effective implementation of remediation approaches can be challenging, particularly in areas where centralized, treated, piped water supplies are not available or accessible.The optimal selection and management of appropriate remediation approaches can be challenging because of variability in the suitability of different types of remediation technologies, as well as variability in geochemical conditions, socio-economic and regulatory context, risk trade-offs and gaps in the availability of data relevant for decision-support (e.g. remediation efficiency testing, local geochemical conditions). The aim of the GeoCERT project is to help address some of these challenges by establishing the relationship between the efficiency of market-available groundwater remediation technologies and source water chemistry to help support optimal selection of remediation strategies in the context of South Asia. Building on from our recent and ongoing research in Bihar, and working closely with Project Partners at Mahavir Cancer Sansthan (Patna, India) and University of Melbourne (Melbourne, Australia), we will systematically address this aim by investigating the performance of market-available remediation technologies for the removal of arsenic, fluoride and an example emerging organic contaminant (sucralose) in groundwaters representing the range of compositions found in Bihar, India. With an underpinning focus on knowledge exchange and impact, we will work closely with our partners to produce catalytic outputs including leading publications reporting key findings, stakeholder guidance and submission of further proposals to develop robust, data-informed decision support systems for groundwater remediation in South Asia and elsewhere in the Global South.