Mapping Arsenic Risks in the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) Delta, Myanmar: Implications for Public Health.

ABSTRACT: The Ayeyarwady Delta in Myanmar, home to an estimated 12 million people, faces widespread arsenic contamination similar to other Asian deltas namely Bengal, Red River, and Mekong. Arsenic here primarily results from reductive dissolution of iron minerals in anoxic conditions driven by organic carbon. Here, we used digital elevation model (DEM) data to investigate how drainage density and hierarchical recharge pathways influence arsenic distribution, supported by combined data set of 136 wells (81 new, 55 from a prior study)-up to 215 m deep-along a 170 km west-to-east transect across the delta. Findings indicate arsenic hotspots in the mid-central region of the delta, where high drainage density appears to facilitate focused recharge, delivering organic carbon to underlying aquifers. Compa

SUBMITTER: Hoque MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12569530 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature