Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Harris County MUD 422

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.

 

23

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

15

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.590 ppm330.0800 ppm - 0.950 ppm
20190.608 ppm440.0700 ppm - 1.15 ppm
20200.420 ppm440.0600 ppm - 1.14 ppm
20210.408 ppm440.0900 ppm - 0.730 ppm
20220.365 ppm440.0800 ppm - 0.950 ppm
20230.518 ppm440.0800 ppm - 0.980 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
2018-06-08AE291160.0800 ppm
2018-08-30AE388490.740 ppm
2018-12-04AE476810.950 ppm
2019-03-14AE583381.15 ppm
2019-06-03AE687800.390 ppm
2019-09-06AE824030.0700 ppm
2019-11-07AE888150.820 ppm
2020-02-13AE982801.14 ppm
2020-04-29AF086000.390 ppm
2020-07-27AF205600.0900 ppm
2020-11-09AF336360.0600 ppm
2021-02-01AF417550.730 ppm
2021-06-10AF573150.360 ppm
2021-08-11AF657950.0900 ppm
2021-11-01AF751620.450 ppm
2022-02-07AF830510.950 ppm
2022-04-25AF941310.310 ppm
2022-08-23AG103990.0800 ppm
2022-11-21AG193070.120 ppm
2023-01-25AG263570.980 ppm
2023-04-17AG368270.270 ppm
2023-07-25AG499180.0800 ppm
2023-11-30AG649300.740 ppm