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By MONICA LUHARIndia-West Staff Reporter

BERKELEY, Calif. — Millions of South Asians have been affected by contaminated water filled with arsenic, potentially leading to cancer and various other health problems, according to Ashok Gadgil, professor of civil and environmental engineering at UC Berkeley, during a talk here Nov. 17.

Gadgil and his team of col-leagues at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory sought to find a solution to the problem by launching a project in 2005 that would eliminate arsenic in afflict-ed areas such as Bangladesh and West Bengal, using technology that would be easily accessible and affordable for local popula-tions in South Asia.

After several experiments, a team of experts at Gadgil’s labo-ratory invented Electrochemical Arsenic Remediation, a method used to remove arsenic from wa-ter using electricity and iron rust particles.

Gadgil and his colleagues later traveled to Bangladesh, West Bengal and Cambodia, which have high levels of arsenic and mass contamination. The team tested the technology there and found that it worked well to remove arsenic.

“Based on the results, we know now it costs us 0.023 cents per liter of water. And it’s inexpen-sive so local people can afford it. That’s the idea,” Gadgil told

Ashok Gadgil talks about technology used to remove arsenic from water in South Asian countries. (Monica Luhar photo)

UC Prof Discusses Affordable Methods of Arsenic Remediation

India-West. The team also spent a lot of time

in the field interviewing families and conducting tests at local high schools.

“We did a few tests about 11 months ago at a local high school in West Bengal. The school com-mittee was very enthusiastic about the trial because the whole school only had one source of water and a shallow hand pump loaded in arsenic,” said Gadgil.

During a Q&A session, the Indi-an American professor addressed issues concerning concentrated areas of arsenic, alternative tech-nologies for arsenic remediation, including the future of the ongoing project and various other issues concerning arsenic poisoning.

“Arsenic is throughout the earth’s crust. It’s pretty broadly distributed. The western United States also has a problem with arsenic in ground water,” Gadgil

said. “In California, right in Sonoma

County, where people have to rely on ground water, they have too much arsenic in there. Arsenic is found in Chile, China, Mexico and many other areas,” he added.

Another alternative for remov-ing arsenic uses bottom ash from coal power plants and is quite affordable for local communities, according to Gadgil.

Gadgil and his team of col-leagues continue to push for further research while conducting various ongoing tests. In 2012, the team is set to conduct a large field test involving a 500 scaled liter system which will run 10

hours a day. “Once we demonstrate how to

make a solution that is financially viable and locally affordable, and technically effective, we have done our intellectual contribu-tion,” said Gadgil.

Gadgil currently serves as the director of the Environmental Energy Technologies Division of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and has received multiple awards and honors for his work. He holds a doctorate in physics from UC Berkeley.

The event was sponsored by the Center for South Asia Studies and the Blum Center for Developing Economies.

By a Staff Reporter

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Several awards were presented Oct. 8 as the Sikh American Legal Defense Education Fund held its 15th An-niversary National Gala here.

Joined by over 400 guests, gov-ernment officials, awardees and supporters from across the coun-try, the sold-out event highlighted SALDEF’s accomplishments over the past 15 years, and recognized those who have contributed to the Sikh American community’s progress and strengthened civil rights in the United States.

The first award of the night, the Bhagat Singh Thind Community Empowerment Award, recognized

Rana Singh Sodhi for his ability to transcend the tragedy of his brother’s death and utilize it as a catalyst for education, outreach, and understanding.

Another award, the Youth Lead-ership award, went to Deep Singh, co-founder of the Jakara Move-ment, a youth-oriented Sikh orga-nization based in California aimed at connecting Sikh American youth to Sikh history and beliefs as well as social justice.

SALDEF also recognized with awards S. Floyd Mori, national executive director of the Japa-nese American Citizens; for-mer Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta, and Sen. Dick Durbin.

SALDEF Gala Celebrates 15th Anniversary