Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Carbondale, Town of

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.

 

19

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

19

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.447 ppm330.270 ppm - 0.610 ppm
20190.783 ppm330.540 ppm - 1.10 ppm
20200.480 ppm330.280 ppm - 0.730 ppm
20210.540 ppm330.150 ppm - 1.000 ppm
20220.588 ppm440.350 ppm - 1.10 ppm
20230.463 ppm330.450 ppm - 0.490 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 Result
2018-10-170.610 ppm
2018-10-170.270 ppm
2018-10-170.460 ppm
2019-05-140.710 ppm
2019-05-141.10 ppm
2019-05-140.540 ppm
2020-11-030.730 ppm
2020-11-030.280 ppm
2020-11-030.430 ppm
2021-12-130.150 ppm
2021-12-131.000 ppm
2021-12-130.470 ppm
2022-07-180.450 ppm
2022-07-250.350 ppm
2022-07-251.10 ppm
2022-12-270.450 ppm
2023-10-030.450 ppm
2023-10-030.450 ppm
2023-10-030.490 ppm