Nitrates in kansas groudwaterrs as related to animal and human health

Abstract Sources of nitrates observed in farm well water appear related to improper location and construction of wells. Statistical analysis of the low levels of applied inorganic nitrogen fertilizer suggest that the fertilizer applied was not related to the nitrate content of the water. Although the presence of animal health problems did not correlate with the levels of nitrates in well waters and with the use of inorganic fertilizers,the presence of many variables made evaluation difficult. The nitrate levels in many rural and domestic water supplies were sufficiently high to potentially produce physiological impairment in animals drinking those waters. Clinical signs may have been obscured by their own complexity and subtleness. The significance of nitrates in drinking waters can currently be objectively measured only the development of acute nitrate poisoning.