Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Tryon Road Special Utility District

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.

 

22

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

20

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.265 ppm550.146 ppm - 0.460 ppm
20190.204 ppm550.0862 ppm - 0.281 ppm
20200.144 ppm330.129 ppm - 0.154 ppm
20210.188 ppm330.180 ppm - 0.201 ppm
20220.184 ppm330.158 ppm - 0.198 ppm
20230.199 ppm330.160 ppm - 0.241 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
2018-11-28Q18484640110.460 ppm
2018-11-28Q18484640120.218 ppm
2018-11-28Q18484640130.250 ppm
2018-11-28Q18484640140.146 ppm
2018-11-28Q18484640100.250 ppm
2019-03-21Q19119300010.281 ppm
2019-03-21Q19119300070.234 ppm
2019-03-21Q19119300080.173 ppm
2019-03-21Q19119300110.247 ppm
2019-03-21Q19119300140.0862 ppm
2020-05-26Q20206080230.129 ppm
2020-05-26Q20206080290.149 ppm
2020-05-26Q20206080150.154 ppm
2021-02-26Q21051650070.183 ppm
2021-02-26Q21051650080.180 ppm
2021-11-18Q21323910040.201 ppm
2022-10-24Q22319720010.158 ppm
2022-10-24Q22319720090.198 ppm
2022-10-24Q22319720100.196 ppm
2023-07-19Q23284560050.197 ppm
2023-08-10Q23332670080.241 ppm
2023-08-10Q23332670170.160 ppm