Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

City of Richland

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.

 

48

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

43

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.670 ppm880.0873 ppm - 1.70 ppm
20191.16 ppm880.121 ppm - 3.26 ppm
20200.494 ppm880.155 ppm - 0.993 ppm
20210.504 ppm880.207 ppm - 0.732 ppm
20220.455 ppm880.119 ppm - 0.886 ppm
20230.395 ppm880.0537 ppm - 0.855 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
2018-02-01Q18041620040.427 ppm
2018-02-01Q18041620010.0873 ppm
2018-04-18Q18159290020.609 ppm
2018-04-18Q18159290011.70 ppm
2018-07-18Q18285960010.341 ppm
2018-07-18Q18285960020.757 ppm
2018-10-26Q18432970010.482 ppm
2018-10-26Q18432970040.953 ppm
2019-02-07Q19058090010.728 ppm
2019-02-07Q19058090031.41 ppm
2019-04-30Q19175090022.55 ppm
2019-04-30Q19175090033.26 ppm
2019-09-24Q19682060020.167 ppm
2019-09-24Q19682060010.278 ppm
2019-11-20Q19776450010.121 ppm
2019-11-20Q19776450020.773 ppm
2020-02-11Q20054410010.155 ppm
2020-02-11Q20054410020.487 ppm
2020-06-18Q20248120010.993 ppm
2020-06-18Q20248120020.265 ppm
2020-09-24Q20378650010.385 ppm
2020-09-24Q20378650020.735 ppm
2020-10-20Q20410620010.172 ppm
2020-10-20Q20410620020.760 ppm
2021-01-14Q21010500010.566 ppm
2021-01-14Q21010500020.356 ppm
2021-04-05Q21084560010.470 ppm
2021-04-05Q21084560020.732 ppm
2021-07-27Q21196080010.708 ppm
2021-07-27Q21196080040.316 ppm
2021-10-14Q21288180010.207 ppm
2021-10-14Q21288180020.680 ppm
2022-03-15Q22088880010.202 ppm
2022-03-15Q22088880020.119 ppm
2022-05-04Q22134450010.376 ppm
2022-05-04Q22134450020.411 ppm
2022-08-17Q22243430010.194 ppm
2022-08-17Q22243430020.592 ppm
2022-11-09Q22338750010.886 ppm
2022-11-09Q22338750020.856 ppm
2023-02-09Q23051920010.0537 ppm
2023-02-09Q23051920020.141 ppm
2023-05-02Q23164790010.803 ppm
2023-05-02Q23164790020.855 ppm
2023-08-22Q23354210010.176 ppm
2023-08-22Q23354210020.608 ppm
2023-11-02Q23470740030.462 ppm
2023-11-02Q23470740040.0624 ppm