Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

City of Gilmer

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)

4

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.0759 ppm330.0526 ppm - 0.118 ppm
20190.162 ppm330.0451 ppm - 0.379 ppm
20200.132 ppm330.0409 ppm - 0.310 ppm
20210.0437 ppm330.0393 ppm - 0.0481 ppm
20220.157 ppm330.0402 ppm - 0.384 ppm
20230.0779 ppm330.0222 ppm - 0.172 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
2018-08-30Q18348990110.118 ppm
2018-08-30Q18348990120.0572 ppm
2018-08-30Q18348990100.0526 ppm
2019-10-10Q19722180110.379 ppm
2019-10-10Q19722180120.0451 ppm
2019-10-10Q19722180130.0620 ppm
2020-08-24Q20338250070.0457 ppm
2020-08-24Q20338250170.310 ppm
2020-08-24Q20338250270.0409 ppm
2021-04-01Q21083790100.0393 ppm
2021-04-01Q21083790120.0438 ppm
2021-04-01Q21083790110.0481 ppm
2022-06-14Q22165080050.0402 ppm
2022-10-24Q22319750010.384 ppm
2022-10-24Q22319750080.0473 ppm
2023-06-15Q23227810050.0222 ppm
2023-06-15Q23227810060.0394 ppm
2023-06-15Q23227810250.172 ppm