Is Ames Water Treatment Plant Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

Water source: Ground water
Ownership: Local government
Counties served: Story

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
MON	Monitoring	Resolved	2025-09-01 → 2025-09-30
MON	Monitoring	Resolved	2025-09-01 → 2025-09-30
MON	Monitoring	Resolved	2025-09-01 → 2025-09-30
MON	Monitoring	Resolved	2025-09-01 → 2025-09-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2013-04-01 → 2013-04-30

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
Lead	18.7 µg/L 125% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 15 µg/L worst single sample: 150 µg/L	87/304	SYR4	2013–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	4 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 6 µg/L	38/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Copper	86.4 µg/L 6.6% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 140 µg/L	37/304	SYR4	2013–2019
Chloroform	6.36 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 6.7 µg/L	35/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	0.0 mg/L 0% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	17/17	LCR	2025
Nitrite	96.25 µg/L 9.6% of the EPA limit 1000 µg/L worst single sample: 100 µg/L	16/16	SYR4	2018–2019
TTHM	7.54 µg/L 9.4% of the EPA limit 80 µg/L worst single sample: 7.9 µg/L	13/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	1.16 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.2 µg/L	5/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Fluoride	599.5 µg/L 15% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 600 µg/L	2/2	SYR4	2012
Monobromoacetic Acid	1 µg/L No EPA limit set	2/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	2 µg/L No EPA limit set	2/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Lithium	26 µg/L No EPA limit set	2/2	UCMR-5	2025
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	6 µg/L 10% of the EPA limit 60 µg/L	1/40	SYR4	2012–2019

77 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, TotalArsenicAtrazineBariumBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneBromoformChlorobenzeneCadmiumCarbon TetrachlorideChromiumDichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDi(2-ethylhexyl) PhthalateDibromoacetic AcidDibromochloromethaneDinosebDiquatEthylbenzeneGlyphosateHfpo-DaLassoMercuryNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaNitratePfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpeaPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSeleniumSimazineStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTolueneTrichloroacetic AcidTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: AMES WATER TREATMENT PLANT
Phone: 515-239-5150
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about Ames Water Treatment Plant

Is Ames Water Treatment Plant tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 13 contaminants in Ames Water Treatment Plant'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 Ames Water Treatment Plant's water?

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

How many people does Ames Water Treatment Plant serve?

Ames Water Treatment Plant reports serving 55,177 people in Iowa, per its EPA record.

Has Ames Water Treatment Plant had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 32 violations on file for Ames Water Treatment Plant, 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.