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The source document for this Digest states:
Sources and occurrence of arsenic in the environment.
Arsenic is present in more than 200 mineral species, the most common of which is arsenopyrite.
It has been estimated that about one-third of the atmospheric flux of arsenic is of natural origin. Volcanic action is the most important natural source of arsenic, followed by low-temperature volatilization.
Inorganic arsenic of geological origin is found in groundwater used as drinking-water in several parts of the world, for example Bangladesh.
Organic arsenic compounds such as arsenobetaine, arsenocholine, tetramethylarsonium salts, arsenosugars and arsenic-containing lipids are mainly found in marine organisms although some of these compounds have also been found in terrestrial species.
Source & ©: IPCS "Environmental Health
Criteria for Arsenic and Arsenic compounds",
EHC 224, Chapter 1: Summary, section 2
The source document for this Digest states:
Elemental arsenic is produced by reduction of arsenic trioxide (As2O3) with charcoal. As2O3 is produced as a by-product of metal smelting operations. It has been estimated that 70% of the world arsenic production is used in timber treatment as copper chrome arsenate (CCA), 22% in agricultural chemicals, and the remainder in glass, pharmaceuticals and non-ferrous alloys.
Mining, smelting of non-ferrous metals and burning of fossil fuels are the major industrial processes that contribute to anthropogenic arsenic contamination of air, water and soil. Historically, use of arsenic-containing pesticides has left large tracts of agricultural land contaminated. The use of arsenic in the preservation of timber has also led to contamination of the environment.
Source & ©: IPCS "Environmental Health
Criteria for Arsenic and Arsenic compounds",
EHC 224, Chapter 1: Summary, section 2
The source document for this Digest states:
Environmental transport and distribution
Arsenic is emitted into the atmosphere by high-temperature processes such as coal-fired power generation plants, burning vegetation and volcanism. Natural low-temperature biomethylation and reduction to arsines also releases arsenic into the atmosphere. Arsenic is released into the atmosphere primarily as As2O3 and exists mainly adsorbed on particulate matter. These particles are dispersed by the wind and are returned to the earth by wet or dry deposition.
Arsines released from microbial sources in soils or sediments undergo oxidation in the air, reconverting the arsenic to non-volatile forms, which settle back to the ground. Dissolved forms of arsenic in the water column include arsenate, arsenite, methylarsonic acid (MMA) and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA). In well-oxygenated water and sediments, nearly all arsenic is present in the thermodynamically more stable pentavalent state (arsenate). Some arsenite and arsenate species can interchange oxidation state depending on redox potential (Eh), pH and biological processes. Some arsenic species have an affinity for clay mineral surfaces and organic matter and this can affect their environmental behaviour. There is potential for arsenic release when there is fluctuation in Eh, pH, soluble arsenic concentration and sediment organic content. Weathered rock and soil may be transported by wind or water erosion. Many arsenic compounds tend to adsorb to soils, and leaching usually results in transportation over only short distances in soil.
Three major modes of arsenic biotransformation have been found to occur in the environment: redox transformation between arsenite and arsenate, the reduction and methylation of arsenic, and the biosynthesis of organoarsenic compounds. There is biogeochemical cycling of compounds formed from these processes.
Source & ©: IPCS "Environmental Health
Criteria for Arsenic and Arsenic compounds",
EHC 224, Chapter 1: Summary, section 3
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