Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Star Sewer and Water District Water System

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.

 

25

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

10

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.0500 ppm41ND - 0.200 ppm
20190.0500 ppm41ND - 0.200 ppm
20200.520 ppm52ND - 2.40 ppm
20210.475 ppm42ND - 1.70 ppm
20220.425 ppm42ND - 1.40 ppm
20230.450 ppm42ND - 1.50 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
2018-06-14I18270030.200 ppm
2018-06-14I1827002ND
2018-06-14I1827001ND
2018-06-14I1827004ND
2019-03-28I1913764ND
2019-03-28I19137630.200 ppm
2019-03-28I1913762ND
2019-03-28I1913761ND
2020-08-17I2039792ND
2020-08-17I20397930.200 ppm
2020-08-17I2039794ND
2020-09-02I20432462.40 ppm
2020-09-02I2043247ND
2021-02-10I2106622ND
2021-02-10I21066211.70 ppm
2021-08-10I2141158ND
2021-08-10I21411590.200 ppm
2022-09-07I22441680.300 ppm
2022-09-07I2244167ND
2022-11-02I2254682ND
2022-11-02I22546811.40 ppm
2023-07-13I2314384-01ND
2023-07-13I2314384-021.50 ppm
2023-07-13I2314384-03ND
2023-07-13I2314384-040.300 ppm