The book is an up-to-date synthesis of research on the causes and results of arsenic (As) pollution. Arsenic pollution has many adverse consequences for human health and among the global poor it is especially significant. Over 50 million people in South and East Asia have drunk As-contaminated water for decades at levels above 50 ppb, greatly in excess of WHO and other health guidelines. Such a problem reflects one of the most serious human impacts on environmental systems and has been referred to as history's largest mass poisoning. The problem is complex and highly multidisciplinary: this book attempts to integrate the burgeoning geochemical, hydrological and biological research findings to understand the causes, consequences and prevention of As pollution. The book provides global geographical information on As pollution, geochemistry and hydrogeology, health effects of As in food and water, mitigation of As contamination and As-removal technologies. One area that receives less attention is microbial involvement in As mobility despite microbes being involved in most As transformations in the environment, their intimate relationships with plants and their potential as bioremediation agents. This perhaps reflects the predominantly geographical nature of the treatise but means that readers should seek additional information on this topic from other sources for a fuller picture. Despite this, the book is an excellent contribution to the field, and is clear and well written with ample figures and tables, and an extensive bibliography.