The World Health Organization estimates that > 140 million people worldwide are exposed to arsenic (As)–contaminated drinking water. As undergoes biologic methylation, which facilitates renal As elimination. In folate-deficient individuals, this process is augmented by folic acid (FA) supplementation, thereby lowering blood As (bAs). Creatinine concentrations in urine are a robust predictor of As methylation patterns.

Access to safe drinking water is essential for health. Monitoring access to drinking water focuses on water supply type at the source, but there is limited evidence on whether quality differences at the source persist in water stored in the household.

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In the present study, the geochemical characteristics of groundwater and drinking water quality has been studied. 24 groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, carbonate, bicarbonate, chloride, sulphate, nitrate, calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium and total hardness. The results were evaluated and compared with WHO and BIS water quality standards. The studied results reveal that the groundwater is fresh to brackish and moderately high to hard in nature. Na and Cl are dominant ions among cations and anions.

The present article discusses the application of a new technology using solar photovoltaic (PV) cell coupled with membrane distillation (MD) in the desalination of tap water. Salinity decreases the palatibility of water and causes long-term health issues. MD is the most promising technology to provide safe and clean drinking water to households and for other applications in small quantities. It consumes less energy than the existing commercial brackish water reverse osmosis (RO; pressure-driven) desalination technology (48%) used for the production of drinking water.

Many boreal waters are currently becoming browner with effects on biodiversity, fish production, biogeochemical processes and drinking water quality. The question arises whether and at which speed this browning will continue under future climate change. To answer the question we predicted the absorbance (a420) in 6347 lakes and streams of the boreal region under future climate change. For the prediction we modified a numerical model for a420 spatial variation which we tested on a temporal scale by simulating a420 inter-annual variation in 48 out of the 6347 Swedish waters.

On 8 November 2013, super typhoon Haiyan made landfall in Philippines. On 24 November, the Chinese hospital ship arrived in Philippines to help with disaster relief efforts. Drinking water was collected at a variety of locations, and the concentration levels of lead were determined with field test kit. The results showed that the levels of lead in 67% of total collected water samples exceeded WHO's standard. Afterwards, the local government had taken many measures to ensure a safe water supply in next few months.

Combined sewer overflows (CSOs) occur in combined sewer systems when sewage and stormwater runoff are released into water bodies, potentially contaminating water sources. CSOs are often caused by heavy precipitation and are expected to increase with increasing extreme precipitation associated with climate change.

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