According to the CDC, in my home state of Minnesota, the leading cause of death is cancer. In Minnesota specifically, cancer is often caused by nitrate exposure. Such exposure through drinking water should be more tightly regulated and monitored compared to current Minnesota standards. Currently, the state does not have a proactive plan to reduce nitrate exposure, as it suggests, testing the water and finding an alternative water source if it exceeds exposure limits. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) committee is reviewing potential plans to reduce nitrate exposure in one part of the state. However, they have not implemented a proactive plan statewide. According to the NIH, such nitrates are “nitrogen-oxygen chemical units that naturally occur in soil, water, and some foods” that “react with amines and amides to form N-nitroso compounds (NOCs).” 

        Although nitrates are found in food, other components, like vitamins, interact with nitrates to avoid turning into NOCs. Therefore, we intake nitrates through water and soil, which leads to the formation of NOCs. The same NIH study found that NOCs are related to causing Colorectal, Kidney and Renal Pelvis, Ovarian, Stomach, and Thyroid cancer. EPA's surveillance sets the national limit to 10 mg/L of nitrate concentrate in our drinking water to avoid harmful effects. The same EPA surveillance has found that in Minnesota, 21 square miles is above this standard. This area is mainly in central and southwestern Minnesota. 

       The water is contaminated in this area in many ways, including when “many fertilizers used on yards, golf courses, and crops” and “discharge from sewage systems and animal manure” come into groundwater/runoff water. Such nitrate exposure through drinking water has gotten so severe that it has affected over 500,000 Minnesotans. This exposure has caused many health issues like birth defects and thyroid issues. If the exposure rate is not reduced soon, our current and future generations will have increased rates of cancer and other related health issues. I am calling for MN Representative John Huot, MN Senator Erin Maye Quade, MPCA Commissioner Katrina Kessler, MPCA Deputy Commissioner Peter Tester, and Governor Tim Walz to help address this issue. The issue can be resolved by implementing statewide regulations on fertilizer use, regular checks on manure and sewage removal, and an act that helps reduce nitrates in our wells and improve our waterways by removing the infrastructure that increases nitrate exposure.