Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Grand Lakes Municipal Utility District 4

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)

8

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.1000 ppm220.0800 ppm - 0.120 ppm
20190.615 ppm220.320 ppm - 0.910 ppm
20200.200 ppm220.200 ppm
20210.370 ppm220.270 ppm - 0.470 ppm
20220.185 ppm220.160 ppm - 0.210 ppm
20230.0950 ppm220.0600 ppm - 0.130 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
2018-07-17AE334670.120 ppm
2018-07-17AE334800.0800 ppm
2019-05-07AE650440.910 ppm
2019-05-07AE650590.320 ppm
2020-06-24AF166630.200 ppm
2020-06-24AF166820.200 ppm
2021-06-21AF587460.270 ppm
2021-06-21AF587550.470 ppm
2022-01-21AF811270.210 ppm
2022-01-21AF811300.160 ppm
2023-07-20AG494820.0600 ppm
2023-07-20AG494940.130 ppm