A team of researchers has discovered a method that may help deliver potable water to communities that may still lack access to clean water sources.
As reported by Canadian Light Source, researchers out of Yukon University Research Centre and the Université de Moncton have developed underground filters that could be utilized in an effort to clean up polluted groundwater.
Organic permeable reactive barriers have previously been used to remove many types of contaminants in temperate climates around the globe. However, their effectiveness in cold regions, like the Arctic, has largely been untested. Many believed that chemical and biological reactions could slow down in colder temperatures, affecting the removal of contaminants.
Led by Dr. Morgane Desmau, an environmental scientist and assistant professor at the Université de Moncton, the research team tested how well these filters could clean water similar to sources close to a mine at 5 degrees Celsius, or 41 degrees Fahrenheit, over the course of 36 weeks.
Using a custom-built water treatment system in a research lab, the team observed how effective the filters were at filtering harmful chemicals such as nitrate, arsenic, and uranium, which are often found in compromised water sources.
"Passive and semi-passive water treatment systems are based on what occurs in nature," Desmau said. "Wetlands are a good example. It takes some time to get it set up, but then it just runs on its own. The idea is to be more sustainable, more cost-efficient, and as effective."
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At the conclusion of the 36-week trial, the results indicated that PRBs could still work in cold environments to remove several contaminants at once, especially arsenic and uranium. But it is still a bit tricky to remove all contaminants equally, since each behaves differently in cold and chemically complex conditions. Only 50% of the nitrate was removed by the filter.
Despite the struggle to remove the nitrate, Desmau was strongly encouraged by the study's results. "It's a good first step in creating more semi-passive water treatment systems that work well specifically in the north," Desmau added, per Canadian Light Source.
In a separate study conducted by Rob Hope, a professor at the School of Geography and the Environment at Oxford University, it is estimated that over 4 billion people lack access to clean drinking water. Not only can this cause the spread of infectious diseases like cholera and diarrhea, but it can also worsen malnutrition and lead to food insecurity.
According to Desmau, the progression of PRBs could help alleviate the clean water crisis. "We need these semi-passive or passive water treatment systems in the north, not only in Canada but any country where there is a subarctic or arctic climate might use this research," said Desmau, per Canadian Light Source.
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"What I found so interesting about what we did and what is so exciting about this research is that even though it was not working perfectly, even though it's not perfect, we were able to identify why it's not working and what we can maybe do to improve and better design those kinds of systems in the future," added Desmau.
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