Jafar Rahnamarad - Department of Geology,Associate Professor, Islamic Azad University,Zahedan Branch, Zahedan,
Mahin Esmaeil Zaei - Department of Civil Engineering ,Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, Safdarganj Development Area,Hauz Khas, IIT Campus, New Delhi, DL ۱۱۰۰۱۶, India, PhD Scholar

This study was conducted to evaluate effects of irrigation of 300 ha of pistachio growing lands with water from the Shour River on groundwater resources of the Rafsanjan plain. The comparatively high prevalence of arsenic-related cancers, the high concentration of arsenic in the nearby plains, and the recharge of the Shour River through Sarcheshmeh Mountains composed of volcanic hosted massive sulfide ore deposits (VMS), are the authors' motivations for reviewing the concentration of this substance in the Rafsanjan groundwater and the Shour River. Arsenic concentration was measured in 41 samples from the river and groundwater resources using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The results were evaluated through iso-concentration maps, correlation diagrams, and multivariate statistical methods. Accordingly, the concentration of arsenic in the Shour River and the Rafsanjan groundwater ranges from 7.5 to 278 μg/l with an average value of 97.82 μg/l . These levels are much higher than that acceptable for drinking Water (10 μg/l) . The high arsenic content of groundwater of the Rafsanjan plain are ascribed to both the decomposition of sulfides present in mountainous volcanic rocks and the Shour River pollution in the vicinity of the Sarcheshmeh copper mine caused by Acid mine drainage (AMD) - which is regarded as the worst environmental problem related to mining that affects surface and groundwater quality- originating from waste dumps in this mine.

Arsenic, Groundwater, Pollution, Iran