ABSTRACT
Groundwater is the prime source for agricultural purposes, around 60% of irrigation and 85% of drinking water directly depend on it. Although the declining groundwater quality has become an issue of concern, it is attributing to the contamination of water. Groundwater pollution caused by anthropogenic activities include organic and inorganic pollutants, which have been detected at unsafe levels in groundwater, thus making the drinking water practically unusable. Newly emerging pollutants such as organic micropollutants have been seen in some of the industrialized and developing nations. This possesses a major threat to the groundwater sources. Despite the advances in these strategies, they are still not good enough for the removal of emerging contaminants. Various new emerging contaminants have also been introduced in the environment without detection which include pesticides, pharmaceuticals, industrial compounds, water treatment byproducts, surfactants and flame retardants as well as caffeine and nicotine. Thus, remediation is highly required for controlling or removing these contaminants which exceed or can exceed the predetermined levels. In recent times, many in situ remediation strategies have been adopted, most of them still being pump and treat methods. The present chapter summarizes the occurrence, fate, and remedial procedures of groundwater contamination.
