Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Jonesborough 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.

 

6

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

6

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.239 ppm110.239 ppm
20190.296 ppm110.296 ppm
20200.253 ppm110.253 ppm
20210.182 ppm110.182 ppm
20220.276 ppm110.276 ppm
20230.164 ppm110.164 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
2018-07-100.239 ppm
2019-08-070.296 ppm
2020-08-130.253 ppm
2021-06-030.182 ppm
2022-07-110.276 ppm
2023-08-220.164 ppm