ABSTRACT
In Europe, particularly in Italy, during the last few years the presence of arsenic in groundwater was reported from many provinces in the North of Italy.
Arsenic (As) is human carcinogen and it exists under different chemical species in groundwater. Inorganic arsenite and arsenate are predominant, but low amounts of organic species may also be found (Anderson 1991). The toxicity of As in the environment is species dependent. The general order of toxicity for As in natural waters is given as: organoarsenicals (e.g. methylated species) < arsenates (As (V)) <arsenites (As(III)) (Yamauchi 1994). Another important characteristic is that AsV species are less mobile than AsIII species in many environmental systems (Bhattacharya 2002).
