Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Johnson City Water Department

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.

 

8

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

8

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.340 ppm220.220 ppm - 0.460 ppm
20190.395 ppm220.220 ppm - 0.570 ppm
20200.357 ppm220.184 ppm - 0.530 ppm
20210.341 ppm220.158 ppm - 0.524 ppm
2022N/A00N/A
2023N/A00N/A

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
2018-09-180.460 ppm
2018-09-180.220 ppm
2019-09-110.570 ppm
2019-09-110.220 ppm
2020-09-160.530 ppm
2020-09-160.184 ppm
2021-09-210.524 ppm
2021-09-210.158 ppm