Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Utrwd Regional Water Treatment Plant

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.

 

12

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

10

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.294 ppm220.0650 ppm - 0.523 ppm
20190.496 ppm220.254 ppm - 0.738 ppm
20200.459 ppm220.145 ppm - 0.772 ppm
20210.387 ppm220.190 ppm - 0.583 ppm
20220.248 ppm220.115 ppm - 0.380 ppm
20230.487 ppm220.200 ppm - 0.774 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
2018-02-13Q18059570030.523 ppm
2018-09-25Q18382560060.0650 ppm
2019-03-07Q19099100080.738 ppm
2019-10-02Q19711120030.254 ppm
2020-03-09Q20084480030.772 ppm
2020-08-18Q20328590080.145 ppm
2021-02-23Q21045960030.583 ppm
2021-09-27Q21263050080.190 ppm
2022-01-25Q22024360050.380 ppm
2022-09-15Q22276730010.115 ppm
2023-03-07Q23089010010.774 ppm
2023-08-02Q23314450080.200 ppm