Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Lake Wenatchee Water District

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.

 

20

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

1

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.0350 ppm41ND - 0.140 ppm
20190.0583 ppm62ND - 0.230 ppm
2020N/A00N/A
2021ND30ND
20220.0350 ppm41ND - 0.140 ppm
20230.0353 ppm31ND - 0.106 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
2018-01-03ND
2018-01-03ND
2018-01-030.140 ppm
2018-04-25ND
2019-01-08ND
2019-01-080.230 ppm
2019-01-080.120 ppm
2019-01-08ND
2019-03-27ND
2019-08-08ND
2021-01-044054975ND
2021-01-044054978ND
2021-01-044054974ND
2022-01-044222924ND
2022-01-044222932ND
2022-01-0442229290.140 ppm
2022-04-044263766ND
2023-01-094397652ND
2023-01-094396796ND
2023-01-0943967970.106 ppm