Nitrate in groundwater
Groundwater contains only a few milligrams of nitrate per litre from natural sources. The majority of nitrate in groundwater is released from manure and mineral fertilisers in agriculture. If more fertiliser is applied than the plants can take up, the excess nitrogen is washed out of the soil as nitrate and transferred to the groundwater with the leachate. Deposits of nitrogen oxides and ammonia from the atmosphere also increase the nitrogen content in the soil and therefore the risk of nitrate leaching into groundwater.
Groundwater is Switzerland’s main drinking water resource. Over 80% of Swiss drinking water is extracted from groundwater.
poor
negative
The nitrate concentration in groundwater exceeds the numerical requirement of the Waters Protection Ordinance (WPO) of 25 mg/l nationwide at 15% of NAQUA monitoring sites. The nitrate concentration is highest in intensively farmed regions. Below arable land it exceeds 25 mg/l in almost 50% of monitoring sites. After a slight decline of the number of monitoring sites exceeding the limit value in groundwater during several years, this number increased again between 2016 and 2021. In the Central Plateau in particular, the concentrations are too high in many places.
A balanced nitrogen budget in agriculture and sustainable soil management well adapted to the local conditions would prevent excessive nitrate leaching. Further targeted measures to reduce the nitrate concentration in groundwater are being promoted by the federal government as part of the rehabilitation project according to Article 62a of the Waters Protection Act.
Further information : Link
- Related indicators
- Ammonia emissions
- Nitrogen oxide emissions
- Stickstoff-Bilanz in der Landwirtschaft
Since target values can differ from country to country, the data cannot be directly compared.
The nitrate concentration in Swiss groundwater is recorded at national level under the NAQUA National Groundwater Monitoring. The NAQUA monitoring network is operated by the FOEN in close cooperation with the cantonal authorities. The NAQUA monitoring network is operated by the FOEN in close cooperation with the cantonal authorities and covers 545 monitoring sites. The maximum value per NAQUA monitoring site per year is used for the statistical analyses.
| Targeted trend | Initial value | Final value | Variation in % | Observed trend | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Decrease | Average 2013-2015 | Average 2020-2022 | 12.80% | Growth | negative |
Further information
