Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Nitrate

Galesville Waterworks

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.

 

12

Samples

0

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

3

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

 
YearAverage resultSamples takenDetectionsRange of results
20180.104 ppm220.0960 ppm - 0.111 ppm
20190.194 ppm220.0210 ppm - 0.367 ppm
20200.121 ppm220.0120 ppm - 0.229 ppm
2021ND20ND
20220.180 ppm220.0790 ppm - 0.280 ppm
20230.00850 ppm220.00800 ppm - 0.00900 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
2018-09-1718I0500-020.0960 ppm
2018-09-1718I0500-030.111 ppm
2019-09-0319I0034-050.0210 ppm
2019-09-0319I0034-040.367 ppm
2020-09-1520I0540-010.0120 ppm
2020-09-1520I0540-020.229 ppm
2021-09-2821I0930-01ND
2021-09-2821I0930-02ND
2022-06-1422F0431-010.0790 ppm
2022-06-1422F0431-020.280 ppm
2023-03-2823C0847-010.00900 ppm
2023-04-0423D0074-010.00800 ppm