Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Harris County Municipal Utility District 286

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.

 

10

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

7

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.190 ppm110.190 ppm
20191.09 ppm111.09 ppm
20200.130 ppm110.130 ppm
20210.450 ppm110.450 ppm
20220.285 ppm21ND - 0.570 ppm
20230.458 ppm43ND - 0.680 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
2018-08-16AE372700.190 ppm
2019-03-26AE598861.09 ppm
2020-08-26AF252820.130 ppm
2021-05-19AF545010.450 ppm
2022-07-21AG05673ND
2022-12-05AG205540.570 ppm
2023-03-16AG333010.630 ppm
2023-05-25AG420230.680 ppm
2023-08-16AG52722ND
2023-11-20AG640910.520 ppm