I heard that nitrate was bad for babies and pesticides are bad for every one. How do these get in the water supply?
The EPA has set a maximum contaminant level for nitrates, since a high dose of nitrates has been linked with a rare blood disorder in infants called “blue baby syndrome”, because the babys skin will have a bluish cast. Pesticides are organic chemicals that farmers use against insects. Private wells are the chief source of water contaminated with these chemicals. Nitrates may come from fertilizers or from human or animal wastes, such as feedlots or septic tanks. Anything applied to the land may wind up in the ground water, as rain percolates downward to the water table.
