Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Travis County Municipal Utility District 12

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.

 

24

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

16

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.280 ppm440.170 ppm - 0.500 ppm
20190.400 ppm440.0900 ppm - 0.640 ppm
20200.190 ppm440.150 ppm - 0.240 ppm
20210.160 ppm440.0700 ppm - 0.250 ppm
20220.113 ppm440.0600 ppm - 0.150 ppm
20230.145 ppm440.0900 ppm - 0.180 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
2018-02-15AE139030.200 ppm
2018-05-14AE260490.250 ppm
2018-08-13AE364890.170 ppm
2018-11-19AE463210.500 ppm
2019-02-14AE544860.640 ppm
2019-05-28AE681450.510 ppm
2019-08-20AE794490.360 ppm
2019-11-25AE903110.0900 ppm
2020-03-03AF007410.160 ppm
2020-04-20AF071200.210 ppm
2020-07-23AF203060.240 ppm
2020-10-19AF310130.150 ppm
2021-01-25AF405230.0700 ppm
2021-04-06AF490450.140 ppm
2021-07-07AF608430.180 ppm
2021-10-21AF742740.250 ppm
2022-02-10AF841270.140 ppm
2022-04-26AF943530.1000 ppm
2022-08-23AG103720.150 ppm
2022-10-19AG175360.0600 ppm
2023-02-15AG289580.140 ppm
2023-04-11AG361590.170 ppm
2023-07-18AG489090.180 ppm
2023-10-11AG592740.0900 ppm