Is Council Bluffs Water Works Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

Water source: Surface water
Ownership: Local government
Counties served: Pottawattamie

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
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2017-10-01 → 2017-10-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2017-10-01 → 2017-10-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2017-10-01 → 2017-10-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2017-10-01 → 2017-10-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2007-07-01 → 2007-09-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2007-07-01 → 2007-09-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2007-07-01 → 2007-09-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2007-07-01 → 2007-09-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	1986-04-01 → 1989-03-31
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	1986-04-01 → 1989-03-31

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
Copper	90.5 µg/L 7% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 780 µg/L	260/317	SYR4	2013–2019
Chloroform	57 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 66 µg/L	246/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	20 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 33 µg/L	242/248	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	80.05 µg/L 100% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 80 µg/L worst single sample: 92 µg/L	240/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	17 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 22 µg/L	237/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	8.555 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 10 µg/L	230/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	7 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 12 µg/L	216/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	28 µg/L 47% of the EPA limit 60 µg/L worst single sample: 49 µg/L	211/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromoacetic Acid	2 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 3 µg/L	179/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	1.4 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.8 µg/L	111/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	8.1 µg/L 54% of the EPA limit 15 µg/L worst single sample: 110 µg/L	99/317	SYR4	2013–2019
Nitrate	5900 µg/L 59% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 7200 µg/L	86/116	SYR4	2012–2019
Chlorite	237 µg/L 24% of the EPA limit 1000 µg/L worst single sample: 260 µg/L	54/60	SYR4	2012–2017
Monochloroacetic Acid	3.2 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 4 µg/L	17/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	0.0020 mg/L 13% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	15/15	LCR	2023
Lithium	150 µg/L No EPA limit set	6/6	UCMR-5	2024
P-Dichlorobenzene	0.9600 µg/L 1.3% of the EPA limit 75 µg/L worst single sample: 1 µg/L	3/7	SYR4	2012–2018
Fluoride	659.5 µg/L 16% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 660 µg/L	2/2	SYR4	2014–2015
Monobromoacetic Acid	2 µg/L No EPA limit set	2/248	SYR4	2012–2019
Barium	60 µg/L 3% of the EPA limit 2000 µg/L	1/2	SYR4	2014–2015
Di(2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate	3.9 µg/L 65% of the EPA limit 6 µg/L	1/4	SYR4	2012–2018
Toluene	0.8000 µg/L 0.1% of the EPA limit 1000 µg/L	1/5	SYR4	2012–2018

71 contaminants tested, none detected

1,1,1-Trichloroethane1,1,2-Trichloroethane1,1-Dichloroethylene1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene1,2-Dichloroethane1,2-Dichloropropane11Cl-PF3OUdS2,4,5-TP2,4-D4:2 Fts6:2 Fts8:2 Fts9Cl-PF3ONSAdonaAntimony, TotalArsenicAsbestosAtrazineBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneChlorobenzeneCadmiumCarbon TetrachlorideChromiumCombined Radium (-226 And -228)DichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDinosebDiquatEthylbenzeneGlyphosateHfpo-DaLassoMercuryNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaNitritePfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpeaPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSeleniumSimazineStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneO-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: COUNCIL BLUFFS WATER WORKS
Phone: 712-328-1006
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about Council Bluffs Water Works

Is Council Bluffs Water Works tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 22 contaminants in Council Bluffs Water Works'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 Council Bluffs Water Works's water?

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

How many people does Council Bluffs Water Works serve?

Council Bluffs Water Works reports serving 64,447 people in Iowa, per its EPA record.

Has Council Bluffs Water Works had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 13 violations on file for Council Bluffs Water Works, of which 0 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.