Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Ridgecrest

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)

11

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.429 ppm220.416 ppm - 0.441 ppm
20190.190 ppm220.114 ppm - 0.265 ppm
20200.211 ppm220.159 ppm - 0.263 ppm
20210.603 ppm220.407 ppm - 0.799 ppm
20220.442 ppm220.391 ppm - 0.493 ppm
20230.365 ppm220.363 ppm - 0.367 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
2018-12-20Q18523090020.441 ppm
2018-12-20Q18523090030.416 ppm
2019-11-14Q19769870010.114 ppm
2019-11-14Q19769870020.265 ppm
2020-08-10Q20313600070.159 ppm
2020-11-04Q20428300030.263 ppm
2021-02-09Q21038830010.407 ppm
2021-02-09Q21038830020.799 ppm
2022-03-23Q22094270010.391 ppm
2022-03-23Q22094270020.493 ppm
2023-03-22Q23108350010.367 ppm
2023-08-16Q23343030010.363 ppm