News FactsPalmdale, CA February 18, 2012- An American Chemical Society (ACS) sponsored event was organized by the ChemClub of Highland High School to demonstrate filtering arsenic removal from contaminated water. Arsenic contamination in drinking water is a naturally occurring phenomenon, and high concentrations of arsenic occur in many locations around the world.1
How much arsenic do your favorite beverages contain?
Ankit Vij, a student at the high school, organized the Highland High School arsenic event with Carolyn Cardellio, his chemistry teacher, and with Andy Guenthner, who is the local ACS President (Mojave Desert Section). The educational event was titled “What do chemists do to make water safe for drinking.” Participants from the nonprofit global organization Chemists Without Borders and the Mojave Section of the ACS, as well as students from the University of California, Santa Barbara provided instruction on how to reclaim water contaminated with arsenic.
Chemists demonstrated how an inexpensive filter developed by Professor Hussam at George Mason University in Virginia is being used to bring down the arsenic levels in drinking waters from 80-100 parts per billion (ppb) to below the World Health Organization & US Environmental Protection Agency accepted value of 10 ppb.
Ankit Vij will present a poster on the event at the upcoming ACS National Meeting in San Diego CA at the Sci-Mix poster session on March 26, 2012.
Clean Water – Arsenic (Remediation) Project
In an effort to help the 77-95 million people (35 million of which are children) at risk of ground water arsenic contamination, Chemists Without Borders has created an Arsenic Project. Working with its partner in Bangladesh, this collaboration is making a difference from a Composite Iron Matirx (CIM) filter one drop of water at a time. The Arsenic Project's first phase will start with the distribution of 500 CIM filters and sending one of Chemists Without Borders' members to observe and document the CIM filter manufacturing and distribution process.
Supporting Quotes
“Community Outreach through educational events is an important part of Chemists Without Borders work. Arsenic contamination is common in many areas of the United States, and increasing awareness of this issue is an important health issue” Steven Chambreau, Co-Founder and Vice President, Chemists Without Borders.
ACS Poster
Monday, March 26, 2012 08:00 PM
Sci-Mix (08:00 PM - 10:00 PM)
Location: San Diego Convention Center
Room: Hall D
Supporting Resources
Mojave Section of the ACS
ACS National Meeting Spring 2012
http://hhs.twinriversusd.org/
Chemists Without Borders LinkedIn
Chemists Without Borders FaceBook Group
Chemists Without Borders Community Page
Chemists Without Borders on Youtube
1 Wikipedia - Arsenic contamination of groundwater
About Chemists Without Borders
With over 450 members across 30 countries, Chemists Without Borders solves humanitarian problems by mobilizing the resources and expertise of the global chemistry community and its networks. We currently have projects involving green chemistry education and arsenic remediation in drinking water, and are planning other initiatives. For more information about Chemists Without Borders, visit www.chemistswithoutborders.org.
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Bego Gerber
President and Co-Founder
Chemists Without Borders
408-962-0256
begogerber@chemistswithoutborders.org