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Table 1 Some characteristics about drinking water supply and nitrogen sources in the EU and US.

From: Does the evidence about health risks associated with nitrate ingestion warrant an increase of the nitrate standard for drinking water?

 

Population

Drinking water supply

Waste water

N-surplus agriculture

 

million

%rural

%ground water

%surface water

%largea facilities

%untreated

kg/ha

Austria

7.8

46

95

5

60

14

36

Belgium

10.2

4

53

33

90

62

145

Denmark

5.3

39

99

1

74

11

111

Finland

5.3

63

34

36

36

19

56

France

59.7

17

64

36

73

23

41

Germany

82.7

14

72

16

82

7

92

Greece

10.7

40

50

50

69

44

48

Ireland

3.6

71

25

75

75

27

63

Italy

57.6

10

85

15

83

31

40

Netherlands

15.9

2

66

34

100

2

256

Spain

28.4

16

35

65

73

45

35

UK

58.1

4

27

58

98

5

37

USb

293.7

20

33

67

84

no data

c43

  1. a) serving more than 5000 consumers,
  2. b) US data from [34], EU data from [22] and EUROSTAT http://epp.eurostat.cec.eu.int/
  3. c) Inferred from [35]