Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Rumford Water District

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)

14

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.220 ppm220.210 ppm - 0.230 ppm
20190.477 ppm330.240 ppm - 0.890 ppm
20200.193 ppm32ND - 0.310 ppm
20210.305 ppm220.260 ppm - 0.350 ppm
20220.360 ppm330.270 ppm - 0.430 ppm
20230.310 ppm220.300 ppm - 0.320 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
2018-08-201804475-010.230 ppm
2018-08-201804476-010.210 ppm
2019-06-18201906120085-TE60.890 ppm
2019-07-011904135-010.240 ppm
2019-07-021904136-010.300 ppm
2020-01-15452000052-TE6ND
2020-03-302004408-010.270 ppm
2020-03-302004407-010.310 ppm
2021-03-162102899-010.260 ppm
2021-03-162102898-010.350 ppm
2022-08-182208-04176-0020.430 ppm
2022-09-132207833-010.380 ppm
2022-09-132203230-010.270 ppm
2023-08-082308-01768-0040.320 ppm
2023-08-082308-01768-0020.300 ppm