Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Quint-mar Water Authority

Nitrate, a fertilizer chemical, frequently contaminates drinking water due to agricultural and urban runoff, and discharges from municipal wastewater treatment plants and septic tanks. Excessive nitrate in water can cause oxygen deprivation in infants and increase the risk of cancer. Click here to read more about nitrate.

 

38

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

0

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.0165 ppm660.01000 ppm - 0.0220 ppm
20190.0190 ppm770.0120 ppm - 0.0230 ppm
20200.0195 ppm660.0140 ppm - 0.0290 ppm
20210.0187 ppm770.01000 ppm - 0.0260 ppm
20220.0223 ppm660.0170 ppm - 0.0310 ppm
20230.0182 ppm660.0130 ppm - 0.0260 ppm

ppm = parts per million

State, National, and Health Guidelines for Drinking Water

EWG Health Guideline: 0.14 ppm

The EWG health guideline of 0.14 parts per million, or ppm, for nitrate and nitrite is based on the equivalent health guideline for nitrate, as defined in a peer-reviewed scientific study by EWG. This guideline represents a one-in-one-million annual cancer risk level.

EPA Maximum Contaminant
Level (MCL): 10 ppm

The legal limit for nitrate, established in 1962, was developed to protect infants from acute methemoglobinemia, a life-threatening disorder of oxygen transport in the body. This limit does not fully protect against the risk of cancer and harm to the developing fetus.

ppm = parts per million

All test results

Date Lab ID Result
2018-11-15AB318660.0220 ppm
2018-11-15AB318670.0170 ppm
2018-11-15AB318680.01000 ppm
2018-11-15AB318690.0150 ppm
2018-11-15AB318700.0180 ppm
2018-11-15AB318650.0170 ppm
2019-04-17AB342850.0120 ppm
2019-04-17AB342860.0160 ppm
2019-04-17AB342840.0160 ppm
2019-04-17AB342830.0220 ppm
2019-04-17AB342820.0210 ppm
2019-04-17AB342810.0230 ppm
2019-04-17AB342800.0230 ppm
2020-07-20AB434640.0210 ppm
2020-07-20AB434650.0150 ppm
2020-07-20AB434660.0290 ppm
2020-07-20AB434670.0140 ppm
2020-07-20AB434680.0170 ppm
2020-07-20AB434690.0210 ppm
2021-07-13AB514090.0220 ppm
2021-07-13AB514150.0260 ppm
2021-07-13AB514140.0190 ppm
2021-07-13AB514130.0170 ppm
2021-07-13AB514120.01000 ppm
2021-07-13AB514110.0140 ppm
2021-07-13AB514100.0230 ppm
2022-10-18AB630550.0240 ppm
2022-10-18AB630560.0310 ppm
2022-10-18AB630570.0210 ppm
2022-10-18AB630580.0200 ppm
2022-10-18AB630590.0210 ppm
2022-10-18AB630600.0170 ppm
2023-07-17AB698590.0130 ppm
2023-07-17AB698600.0190 ppm
2023-07-17AB698610.0210 ppm
2023-07-17AB698620.0140 ppm
2023-07-17AB698630.0160 ppm
2023-07-17AB698640.0260 ppm