Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Kirkmont Municipal 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.

 

9

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

6

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.785 ppm220.780 ppm - 0.790 ppm
20190.640 ppm110.640 ppm
20200.345 ppm21ND - 0.690 ppm
20210.390 ppm220.130 ppm - 0.650 ppm
20220.130 ppm220.1000 ppm - 0.160 ppm
20230.440 ppm220.210 ppm - 0.670 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
2019-02-19AE547840.640 ppm
2020-02-19AE988740.690 ppm
2020-12-17AF37943ND
2021-03-04AF452460.650 ppm
2021-05-26AF554760.130 ppm
2022-03-24AF903580.160 ppm
2022-03-24AF903610.1000 ppm
2023-02-22AG298390.670 ppm
2023-02-22AG298500.210 ppm