Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Rio Brazos Water Supply Corporation

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.

 

12

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

7

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.218 ppm220.114 ppm - 0.322 ppm
20190.327 ppm220.1000 ppm - 0.553 ppm
20200.300 ppm220.145 ppm - 0.454 ppm
20210.276 ppm220.0926 ppm - 0.460 ppm
20220.176 ppm220.118 ppm - 0.234 ppm
20230.182 ppm220.0982 ppm - 0.265 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
2018-09-24Q18380180020.322 ppm
2018-09-24Q18380180120.114 ppm
2019-09-23Q19674080010.553 ppm
2019-09-23Q19674080020.1000 ppm
2020-08-03Q20301830090.454 ppm
2020-08-03Q20301830100.145 ppm
2021-03-31Q21081680120.460 ppm
2021-03-31Q21081680130.0926 ppm
2022-11-30Q22358790070.234 ppm
2022-11-30Q22358790080.118 ppm
2023-06-08Q23217280070.265 ppm
2023-06-08Q23217280080.0982 ppm