Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Westchester County WD #2

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.

 

10

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

8

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.310 ppm110.310 ppm
20190.460 ppm110.460 ppm
20200.143 ppm220.0950 ppm - 0.190 ppm
20210.282 ppm220.240 ppm - 0.323 ppm
20220.148 ppm220.126 ppm - 0.170 ppm
20230.321 ppm220.290 ppm - 0.352 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
2018-05-117051461001 NIT0.310 ppm
2019-05-297091340001 NIT0.460 ppm
2020-05-0870130562 NIT0.190 ppm
2020-11-12AW21843-NIT0.0950 ppm
2021-06-0470175718001-NIT0.240 ppm
2021-07-27AX14931-NIT0.323 ppm
2022-05-1370214739001-NIT0.170 ppm
2022-09-21AY17010-NIT0.126 ppm
2023-05-0570255449001-NIT0.290 ppm
2023-07-27AZ13680-NIT0.352 ppm