Diarrheal disease is the leading cause of mortality among children under 5 in Bangladesh. During the past 30 years, to reduce diarrheal diseases, Bangladesh has shift the drinking water from surface water to groundwater, which was assumed to be free of fecal contamination. However, high levels of arsenic were detected in shallow aquifers during the 1990s. The widespread arsenic contamination of groundwater puts between 35 and 77 million people at risk in Bangladesh. Besides, studies have indicated substantial impacts from climate change on the incidence of diarrhea, which may pose new threat to drinking water and public health in Bangladesh.

This presentation will address drinking water challenges in Matlab, a rural area of Bangladesh. Dr. Wu will discuss the relationship between childhood diarrhea, tubewell density and arsenic level in groundwater and how climate affects all of these factors. Finding alternative safe drinking water resources and new technologies to adapt impending climate change and land use change is crucial.

Photo source: ABC News.