Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Waterbury Water Department

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.

 

15

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

0

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.0623 ppm440.0500 ppm - 0.0710 ppm
2019N/A00N/A
20200.0370 ppm220.00200 ppm - 0.0720 ppm
20210.0413 ppm440.0140 ppm - 0.0730 ppm
20220.00925 ppm41ND - 0.0370 ppm
2023ND10ND

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
2018-10-17RWA200509564NOX0.0500 ppm
2018-10-17RWA200509566NOX0.0660 ppm
2018-10-17RWA200509568NOX0.0710 ppm
2018-10-18RWA200509712NOX0.0620 ppm
2020-09-15RWA2005902950.0720 ppm
2020-09-15RWA2005902930.00200 ppm
2021-09-14RWA3000594150.0510 ppm
2021-09-14RWA3000594210.0140 ppm
2021-09-14RWA3000594280.0730 ppm
2021-09-14RWA3000594350.0270 ppm
2022-09-14RWA3002531840.0370 ppm
2022-09-15RWA300253094ND
2022-09-15RWA300253095ND
2022-09-15RWA300253096ND
2023-10-25300436422423ND