Groundwater contamination 12.7 times more likely in non-ODF villages: UN report

Groundwater contamination is 12.7 times more likely in villages practising open-defecation as compared to those declared open-defecation free (ODF) under the Swachh Bharat Mission, a UN study revealed on Wednesday.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) report analysed 752 samples from 12 ODF and and an equal number of non-ODF villages across West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha.

According to the study, soil and food in the non-ODF villages were 1.1 and 2.16 times respectively more likely to be contaminated with human faeces in comparison to ODF villages.

It also revealed that in non-ODF villages, piped water was 2.40 times and household water was 2.48 times more likely at risk of faecal contamination.

In Bihar, the groundwater in the non-ODF villages was 35.7 times more likely to get contaminated. Similarly, in West Bengal and Odisha, the groundwater was 6.5 and 5.3 times respectively more likely at risk of faecal contamination.

Piped water in non-ODF villages in Bihar (1.33 times), West Bengal (2.73 times) and Odisha (1.5 times) too was more likely to get contaminated as compared to ODF villages.

Similarly, the household water in non-ODF villages in Bihar (2.74 times), West Bengal (4.14 times) and Odisha (1.44 times) was more likely to be contaminated in comparison to the ODF villages.

Soil in non-ODF villages in Bihar (1.21 times), West Bengal (1.39 times) and West Bengal (0.89 times) was also at risk of contamination.

"The minimal risk reduction for soil contamination potentially indicates the importance of establishing faecal sludge management together with solid and liquid waste management in more effective ways, to further reduce the risk of disease transmission," the report said.

Valentin Foltescu, Senior Programme and Science Officer, Climate & Clean Air Coalition, UN-Environment said: "The report shows positive correlations between a community being ODF and the decrease in the amount of contaminants from human origin in the community's immediate surroundings."