Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

City of Pullman Water Department

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.

 

27

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

0

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
2018ND50ND
2019ND70ND
2020N/A00N/A
2021ND50ND
2022ND60ND
2023ND40ND

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
2018-07-12ND
2018-07-12ND
2018-07-12ND
2018-07-12ND
2018-07-26ND
2019-05-14ND
2019-05-17ND
2019-06-20ND
2019-06-20ND
2019-06-20ND
2019-06-20ND
2019-06-20ND
2021-06-144131387ND
2021-06-154131388ND
2021-06-154131382ND
2021-06-154131389ND
2021-06-154131390ND
2022-05-274324934ND
2022-06-094293385ND
2022-06-094293388ND
2022-06-094293386ND
2022-06-094293387ND
2022-06-304309011ND
2023-12-264562837ND
2023-12-264562836ND
2023-12-264562838ND
2023-12-264562839ND