Relationship of nitrates and nitrites in the water environment with humans and their activity

Abstract

Nitrates and nitrites in water pose a health and environmental hazards, in particular when exceeding limits defined in the European Union, i.e. max. 50 mg l of nitrates. It is not recommended to exceed the limit of 10 mg l of nitrates for infants and children. The maximum concentration of nitrites is 0.5 mg l for adults and infants less than 0.1 mg l. Our work offers a review of the water quality concerning the relationship between nitrates/nitrites and humans. Basic properties and forms of nitrates, their use for human activities, importance and risks to human health and possibilities of their physicochemical determination are summarized. Our study demonstrates also the novel approaches to the nitrates decontamination in a water environment using various nanomaterials. We aimed at a collection of records from the monitoring of nitrates in selected areas in Slovakia to show good quality of water in various water sources, which over time improves due to the increasingly low fertilization intensity and thus of agriculture production, which is gradually being replaced by imports.