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Berkeley Arsenic Alleviation GroupTotal cost to complete: $66,000 Donations to date: $10,425 Remaining funds needed: $55,575 15.80% funded Date needed by: December 31, 2007 Berkeley Arsenic Alleviation Group: BangladeshArsenic in drinking water is a major public health problem threatening the well-being (and in many cases, lives) of more than a hundred million people. In Bangladesh alone, close to 30 million people drink arsenic laden water from shallow wells, according to World Health Organization estimates. Scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have developed a simple material (“ARUBA”—Arsenic Removal Using Bottom Ash) that takes arsenic out of drinking water cheaply, quickly, and safely. It is made from bottom ash, a waste material from coal fire power plants, which is coated with ferric hydroxide through a simple and inexpensive chemical process. After use, ARUBA can be safely disposed of in landfills. The Berkeley Arsenic Alleviation Group (BAAG) is composed of four students—one graduate student and three undergraduates—in engineering, business, and economics. Our task is to design a process that utilizes ARUBA to effectively remove arsenic from groundwater, which is affordable to poor Bangladeshis in rural villages. In addition, we are developing a business plan for the implementation of the proposed device or process, and an associated economic analysis. Project mission:To design an effective community-based water treatment system to provide affordable arsenic-free water to rural Bangladeshis. Potential impact:Reduce the prevalence of arsenic poisoning in the region, alleviating the sicknesses associated with arsenic poisoning, including gangrene, cancer and lesions in the skin, while also reducing the number of missed work days caused by these illnesses. Required resources:
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