Nitrate

City of Tallahassee

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.

MORE ABOUT THIS CONTAMINANT

163

Samples

Samples exceeding legal limit (MCL)

148

Samples exceeding
health guidelines

Testing results - average by year

Year	Average result	Samples taken	Detections	Range of results
2014	0.366 ppm	27	27	0.0480 ppm - 0.620 ppm
2015	0.352 ppm	27	27	0.0500 ppm - 0.660 ppm
2016	0.355 ppm	27	27	0.0370 ppm - 0.648 ppm
2017	0.386 ppm	27	27	0.104 ppm - 0.680 ppm
2018	0.354 ppm	27	27	0.0210 ppm - 0.609 ppm
2019	0.350 ppm	28	28	0.0120 ppm - 0.695 ppm

ppm = parts per million

State and national drinking water standards and health guidelines

EWG Health Guideline 0.14 ppm

The EWG Health Guideline of 0.14 ppm for nitrate was defined by EWG . This health guideline protects against cancer and harm to fetal growth and development.

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	Result
2014-01-28	0.340 ppm
2014-01-28	0.320 ppm
2014-01-28	0.450 ppm
2014-01-28	0.560 ppm
2014-01-28	0.330 ppm
2014-01-28	0.0480 ppm
2014-03-11	0.610 ppm
2014-03-11	0.620 ppm
2014-03-11	0.190 ppm
2014-03-11	0.230 ppm
2014-03-11	0.410 ppm
2014-03-12	0.470 ppm
2014-05-06	0.416 ppm
2014-05-06	0.270 ppm
2014-05-06	0.486 ppm
2014-05-06	0.536 ppm
2014-05-06	0.222 ppm
2014-07-22	0.0630 ppm
2014-07-22	0.254 ppm
2014-07-22	0.147 ppm
2014-07-22	0.354 ppm
2014-07-22	0.162 ppm
2014-07-22	0.514 ppm
2014-09-09	0.420 ppm
2014-09-09	0.540 ppm
2014-09-09	0.466 ppm
2014-09-09	0.463 ppm
2015-01-21	0.260 ppm
2015-01-21	0.510 ppm
2015-01-21	0.350 ppm
2015-01-21	0.300 ppm
2015-01-21	0.330 ppm
2015-03-10	0.660 ppm
2015-03-10	0.470 ppm
2015-03-10	0.230 ppm
2015-03-10	0.240 ppm
2015-03-10	0.650 ppm
2015-05-05	0.520 ppm
2015-05-05	0.0500 ppm
2015-05-05	0.490 ppm
2015-05-05	0.470 ppm
2015-07-21	0.420 ppm
2015-07-21	0.390 ppm
2015-07-21	0.200 ppm
2015-07-21	0.230 ppm
2015-07-21	0.360 ppm
2015-09-09	0.410 ppm
2015-09-09	0.150 ppm
2015-09-09	0.470 ppm
2015-09-09	0.0700 ppm
2015-09-10	0.130 ppm
2015-09-10	0.290 ppm
2015-09-10	0.420 ppm
2015-09-10	0.440 ppm
2016-01-19	0.279 ppm
2016-01-19	0.334 ppm
2016-01-19	0.339 ppm
2016-01-19	0.285 ppm
2016-01-19	0.329 ppm
2016-01-19	0.136 ppm
2016-03-29	0.213 ppm
2016-03-29	0.203 ppm
2016-03-29	0.452 ppm
2016-03-29	0.628 ppm
2016-03-29	0.648 ppm
2016-05-03	0.287 ppm
2016-05-03	0.473 ppm
2016-05-03	0.447 ppm
2016-05-03	0.494 ppm
2016-05-03	0.503 ppm
2016-07-27	0.243 ppm
2016-07-27	0.479 ppm
2016-07-27	0.228 ppm
2016-07-27	0.338 ppm
2016-07-27	0.376 ppm
2016-11-01	0.444 ppm
2016-11-01	0.519 ppm
2016-11-01	0.387 ppm
2016-11-01	0.0930 ppm
2016-11-01	0.0370 ppm
2016-11-01	0.402 ppm
2017-01-24	0.311 ppm
2017-01-24	0.262 ppm
2017-01-24	0.279 ppm
2017-01-24	0.114 ppm
2017-01-24	0.325 ppm
2017-01-24	0.237 ppm
2017-03-08	0.212 ppm
2017-03-08	0.450 ppm
2017-03-08	0.625 ppm
2017-03-08	0.288 ppm
2017-03-08	0.225 ppm
2017-03-08	0.478 ppm
2017-06-20	0.400 ppm
2017-06-20	0.388 ppm
2017-06-20	0.637 ppm
2017-06-20	0.533 ppm
2017-06-20	0.225 ppm
2017-06-20	0.522 ppm
2017-07-01	0.636 ppm
2017-07-18	0.260 ppm
2017-07-18	0.412 ppm
2017-07-18	0.680 ppm
2017-07-18	0.487 ppm
2017-09-14	0.104 ppm
2017-09-14	0.371 ppm
2017-09-14	0.480 ppm
2017-09-14	0.468 ppm
2018-03-20	0.221 ppm
2018-03-20	0.267 ppm
2018-03-20	0.359 ppm
2018-03-20	0.194 ppm
2018-03-20	0.504 ppm
2018-03-20	0.252 ppm
2018-03-20	0.575 ppm
2018-03-20	0.473 ppm
2018-03-20	0.0870 ppm
2018-03-20	0.0730 ppm
2018-03-20	0.255 ppm
2018-03-20	0.358 ppm
2018-03-20	0.332 ppm
2018-03-20	0.574 ppm
2018-03-21	0.591 ppm
2018-03-21	0.503 ppm
2018-03-21	0.467 ppm
2018-03-21	0.0210 ppm
2018-03-21	0.223 ppm
2018-03-21	0.557 ppm
2018-03-21	0.255 ppm
2018-03-21	0.215 ppm
2018-03-21	0.539 ppm
2018-03-21	0.352 ppm
2018-03-21	0.318 ppm
2018-03-22	0.609 ppm
2018-03-22	0.397 ppm
2019-03-20	0.206 ppm
2019-03-20	0.285 ppm
2019-03-20	0.304 ppm
2019-03-20	0.384 ppm
2019-03-20	0.398 ppm
2019-03-20	0.515 ppm
2019-03-20	0.235 ppm
2019-03-20	0.449 ppm
2019-03-20	0.230 ppm
2019-03-20	0.603 ppm
2019-03-20	0.506 ppm
2019-03-20	0.268 ppm
2019-03-20	0.511 ppm
2019-03-20	0.383 ppm
2019-03-27	0.278 ppm
2019-03-27	0.531 ppm
2019-03-27	0.0120 ppm
2019-03-27	0.472 ppm
2019-03-27	0.379 ppm
2019-03-27	0.695 ppm
2019-03-27	0.549 ppm
2019-03-27	0.228 ppm
2019-03-27	0.344 ppm
2019-03-27	0.273 ppm
2019-03-27	0.291 ppm
2019-07-17	0.197 ppm
2019-11-26	0.202 ppm
2019-12-02	0.0800 ppm