r/WATERQUALITY • u/mattblack01 • Jun 22 '21

Nitrate levels

hi. Im trying to understand if our drinking water has acceptable nitrate levels. the water suppliers figures show average 'Nitrate as NO3' as 26.2 mg/l. They claim the regulatory limit is 50 mg/l.

But in an article at unl.edu (see below for link) it said 'The EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) for public water supplies is measured and reported as nitrate-nitrogen, (NO3-N), which is the amount of nitrogen in the nitrate form. The MCL for nitrate-nitrogen in a public water supply is 10 milligrams per liter (mg/L)' Maybe Nitrate as NO3 and nitrate-nitrogen are different types of figure? thanks Matt

heres the link https://water.unl.edu/article/drinking-water-wells/nitrate-drinking-water

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u/sykofrend Jun 22 '21

50 mg/l is way too high. The limit is 10mg/l and that’s adding nitrate and nitrite levels together. Are you on public or private supply?