Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Jackson County Rural Water District 3

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.

 

27

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

21

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20181.33 ppm220.650 ppm - 2.00 ppm
20191.87 ppm330.690 ppm - 4.20 ppm
20201.38 ppm98ND - 4.30 ppm
20211.57 ppm440.570 ppm - 4.50 ppm
20221.46 ppm32ND - 3.40 ppm
20231.28 ppm62ND - 3.90 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
2018-05-079657560.650 ppm
2018-05-079657582.00 ppm
2019-05-1311572464.20 ppm
2019-05-1311572470.690 ppm
2019-10-0712526150.720 ppm
2020-01-0612979720.660 ppm
2020-03-0213323114.20 ppm
2020-03-0213323120.710 ppm
2020-04-0613500540.630 ppm
2020-05-0413672284.30 ppm
2020-05-0413672270.660 ppm
2020-07-0514256820.640 ppm
2020-08-031468949ND
2020-10-0515753680.660 ppm
2021-01-0417281920.630 ppm
2021-04-0518117400.590 ppm
2021-05-1718406890.570 ppm
2021-05-1718406884.50 ppm
2022-05-0222470480.970 ppm
2022-05-0222470493.40 ppm
2022-10-112377203ND
2023-03-062461382ND
2023-03-0624613833.80 ppm
2023-05-0824963793.90 ppm
2023-05-082496378ND
2023-08-142556864ND
2023-10-102589469ND