Is City of Santa Barbara Water Department Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

Water source: Surface water
Ownership: Local government
Counties served: Santa Barbara

Compliance record

Formal violations the EPA has on file for this supplier. A health-based violation means a contaminant limit or a required treatment was breached; the rest are monitoring or reporting failures — still violations, but not a measured health risk.

health-based violations

violations on file

still open

Violation	Type	Status	Period
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1996-07-01 → 1996-07-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1996-07-01 → 1996-07-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2011-02-01 → 2011-02-28
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2011-02-01 → 2011-02-28

Other contaminants detected

Each bar shows the measured level as a share of the EPA limit: green is well under, amber is close to it, red is over. For lead and copper the limit applies to exactly the 90th-percentile figure shown, so red there means a real exceedance. For everything else the limit applies to a running annual average while the figure is the 95th percentile of this system's samples — over 100% is worth reading, but is not by itself a violation. Where a single sample came in higher than that percentile, it is noted under the bar. Formal violations are listed separately.

Contaminant	Level vs EPA limit	Detection rate	Source	Period
TTHM	76.28 µg/L 95% of the EPA limit 80 µg/L worst single sample: 100 µg/L	273/284	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	29 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 43 µg/L	261/284	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	18.2 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 22 µg/L	257/284	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	22.2 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 28 µg/L	256/284	SYR4	2012–2019
Chloroform	34.15 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 57.5 µg/L	246/284	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	20 µg/L 33% of the EPA limit 60 µg/L worst single sample: 34 µg/L	246/271	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromoacetic Acid	7.22 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 9.5 µg/L	173/271	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	9 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 12 µg/L	171/260	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	12 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 18 µg/L	166/267	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate	7100 µg/L 71% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 7400 µg/L	130/230	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromate	7.03 µg/L 70% of the EPA limit 10 µg/L worst single sample: 9.5 µg/L	75/78	SYR4	2013–2019
Fluoride	615 µg/L 15% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 650 µg/L	47/50	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	0.0 mg/L 0% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	39/39	LCR	2023
Nitrate-Nitrite	994500 µg/L 9945% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 1000000 µg/L	32/77	SYR4	2012–2019
Arsenic	10 µg/L 100% of the EPA limit 10 µg/L worst single sample: 28 µg/L	19/88	SYR4	2012–2019
Copper	121 µg/L 9.3% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 130 µg/L	19/90	SYR4	2012–2019
Monobromoacetic Acid	3 µg/L No EPA limit set	16/254	SYR4	2012–2019
Combined Uranium	8.0161 µg/L 27% of the EPA limit 30 µg/L worst single sample: 8.046 µg/L	14/38	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	3.635 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 3.7 µg/L	14/254	SYR4	2012–2019
Selenium	254 µg/L 508% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 50 µg/L worst single sample: 290 µg/L	5/38	SYR4	2012–2019
Lithium	42.5 µg/L No EPA limit set	4/6	UCMR-5	2024
Barium	175 µg/L 8.8% of the EPA limit 2000 µg/L worst single sample: 180 µg/L	3/38	SYR4	2012–2019
Cyanide	11870 µg/L 5935% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 200 µg/L worst single sample: 13000 µg/L	3/43	SYR4	2012–2019
Gross Beta Particle Activity	5.48 pCi/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 5.6 pCi/L	3/13	SYR4	2013–2019
Xylenes, Total	7.97 µg/L 0.1% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 8.6 µg/L	3/34	SYR4	2012–2019
Ethylbenzene	0.9355 µg/L 0.1% of the EPA limit 700 µg/L worst single sample: 0.9500 µg/L	2/34	SYR4	2012–2019
Chromium	37 µg/L 37% of the EPA limit 100 µg/L	1/88	SYR4	2012–2019
Tetrachloroethylene	0.5900 µg/L 12% of the EPA limit 5 µg/L	1/120	SYR4	2012–2019

85 contaminants tested, none detected

1,1,1-Trichloroethane1,1,2-Trichloroethane1,1-Dichloroethylene1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene1,2-DIBROMO-3-CHLOROPROPANE1,2-Dichloroethane1,2-Dichloropropane11Cl-PF3OUdS2,3,7,8-TCDD2,4,5-TP2,4-D4:2 Fts6:2 Fts8:2 Fts9Cl-PF3ONSAdonaAntimony, TotalAsbestosAtrazineBhc-GammaBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneBeryllium, TotalChlorobenzeneCadmiumCarbofuranCarbon TetrachlorideChlordaneDichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDi(2-ethylhexyl) PhthalateDinosebDiquatEthylene DibromideEndothallEndrinGlyphosateHexachlorobenzeneHfpo-DaHeptachlorHeptachlor EpoxideHexachlorocyclopentadieneLassoLeadMercuryMethoxychlorNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaNitriteOxamylPfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpeaPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSimazineStyreneThallium, TotalTolueneTotal Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB)ToxapheneTrichloroethyleneVinyl Chloridecis-1,2-DichloroethyleneO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: WARD, MATT
Phone: 805-564-5379
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about City of Santa Barbara Water Department

Is City of Santa Barbara Water Department tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 28 contaminants in City of Santa Barbara Water Department's water. A detection isn't the same as a violation — most levels are within federal limits. See each level and source above, and the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report for its official compliance status.

What contaminants were detected in City of Santa Barbara Water Department's water?

EPA monitoring detected TTHM, Dibromochloromethane, Bromoform, Bromodichloromethane, Chloroform, and others. The full list with the level and data source for each is above.

How many people does City of Santa Barbara Water Department serve?

City of Santa Barbara Water Department reports serving 99,323 people in California, per its EPA record.

Has City of Santa Barbara Water Department had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 4 violations on file for City of Santa Barbara Water Department, of which 2 are health-based (a contaminant limit or required treatment was breached) and 0 remain open. The rest are monitoring or reporting failures.

Where does this data come from?

Every figure is official EPA drinking-water monitoring — the Lead & Copper Rule, the UCMR-5 nationwide testing program, and the EPA Six-Year Review — not our own testing. Each number is labelled with its source and period.