Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

City of Richland Hills

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.

 

18

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

6

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.266 ppm330.0390 ppm - 0.705 ppm
20190.313 ppm330.0122 ppm - 0.908 ppm
20200.249 ppm330.0176 ppm - 0.709 ppm
20210.154 ppm330.0168 ppm - 0.420 ppm
20220.1000 ppm330.0200 ppm - 0.260 ppm
20230.159 ppm330.0199 ppm - 0.420 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
2018-01-30Q18038020020.705 ppm
2018-04-10Q18145260020.0552 ppm
2018-04-10Q18145260090.0390 ppm
2019-01-16Q19022650010.908 ppm
2019-01-16Q19022650030.0173 ppm
2019-01-16Q19022650110.0122 ppm
2020-02-19Q20064080100.0176 ppm
2020-02-19Q20064080110.0203 ppm
2020-11-04Q20429370030.709 ppm
2021-03-17Q21070460050.420 ppm
2021-03-17Q21070460070.0253 ppm
2021-03-17Q21070460060.0168 ppm
2022-01-19Q22020130040.0200 ppm
2022-01-19Q22020130090.260 ppm
2022-01-19Q22020130100.0200 ppm
2023-11-02Q23470480070.420 ppm
2023-11-02Q23470480090.0199 ppm
2023-11-02Q23470480100.0374 ppm