Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Water Authority of Dickson County

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.

 

18

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

16

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.356 ppm330.291 ppm - 0.447 ppm
20190.405 ppm330.396 ppm - 0.416 ppm
20201.06 ppm330.152 ppm - 2.61 ppm
20210.293 ppm330.201 ppm - 0.378 ppm
20220.184 ppm32ND - 0.335 ppm
20230.310 ppm330.123 ppm - 0.541 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 Result
2018-10-020.291 ppm
2018-10-020.447 ppm
2018-10-020.330 ppm
2019-10-090.396 ppm
2019-10-090.416 ppm
2019-10-090.403 ppm
2020-10-070.425 ppm
2020-10-070.152 ppm
2020-10-072.61 ppm
2021-10-060.378 ppm
2021-10-060.201 ppm
2021-10-060.300 ppm
2022-10-050.217 ppm
2022-10-05ND
2022-10-050.335 ppm
2023-10-040.266 ppm
2023-10-040.123 ppm
2023-10-040.541 ppm