Is Effingham Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

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

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	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	1986-06-01 → 1987-05-31
MCL	Health-based	Archived	1985-06-05 → 1986-06-04
MCL	Health-based	Archived	1985-06-05 → 1986-06-04
MCL	Health-based	Archived	1985-06-05 → 1986-06-04

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
Bromodichloromethane	7.7125 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 8.5 µg/L	132/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Chloroform	65.84 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 72.3 µg/L	132/132	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	74.67 µg/L 93% of the EPA limit 80 µg/L worst single sample: 80.8 µg/L	132/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	44.965 µg/L 75% of the EPA limit 60 µg/L worst single sample: 54.2 µg/L	132/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	29.05 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 42.3 µg/L	131/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	10.26 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 11.2 µg/L	129/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	1.606 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 2.11 µg/L	121/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Copper	92 µg/L 7.1% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 100 µg/L	60/60	SYR4	2014–2017
Lead	0.0046 mg/L 31% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	17/17	LCR	2025
Nitrate	670 µg/L 6.7% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L	16/16	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	4.485 µg/L 30% of the EPA limit 15 µg/L worst single sample: 5.2 µg/L	14/60	SYR4	2014–2017
Monobromoacetic Acid	7.757 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 8.03 µg/L	14/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	4.825 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 5.44 µg/L	11/132	SYR4	2012–2019
Barium	18 µg/L 0.9% of the EPA limit 2000 µg/L	8/8	SYR4	2012–2019
Fluoride	965.25 µg/L 24% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 1030 µg/L	8/8	SYR4	2012–2019
Simazine	0.9790 µg/L 24% of the EPA limit 4 µg/L worst single sample: 1 µg/L	3/23	SYR4	2012–2019
Atrazine	0.6480 µg/L 22% of the EPA limit 3 µg/L worst single sample: 0.6500 µg/L	2/16	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate-Nitrite	278 µg/L 2.8% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 280 µg/L	2/2	SYR4	2012–2018
Combined Radium (-226 And -228)	0.4800 pCi/L 9.6% of the EPA limit 5 pCi/L	1/1	SYR4	2014
Dibromoacetic Acid	1 µg/L No EPA limit set	1/132	SYR4	2012–2019

88 contaminants tested, none detected

1,1,1-Trichloroethane1,1,2-Trichloroethane1,1-Dichloroethylene1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene1,2-DIBROMO-3-CHLOROPROPANE1,2-Dichloroethane1,2-Dichloropropane11Cl-PF3OUdS2,4,5-TP2,4-D4:2 Fts6:2 Fts8:2 Fts9Cl-PF3ONSAdonaAntimony, TotalArsenicBhc-GammaBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneBeryllium, TotalBromoformChlorobenzeneCyanideCadmiumCarbofuranCarbon TetrachlorideChlordaneChromiumDichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDi(2-ethylhexyl) PhthalateDinosebDiquatEthylene DibromideEndothallEndrinEthylbenzeneHexachlorobenzeneHfpo-DaHeptachlorHeptachlor EpoxideHexachlorocyclopentadieneLassoMercuryMethoxychlorNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaNitriteOxamylPfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpeaPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSeleniumStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTolueneTotal Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB)ToxapheneTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneLithiumO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: MILLER, STEVEN W.
Phone: 217-342-5303
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about Effingham

Is Effingham tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 20 contaminants in Effingham'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 Effingham's water?

EPA monitoring detected Bromodichloromethane, Chloroform, TTHM, Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5), Dichloroacetic Acid, and others. The full list with the level and data source for each is above.

How many people does Effingham serve?

Effingham reports serving 12,252 people in Illinois, per its EPA record.

Has Effingham had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 26 violations on file for Effingham, of which 13 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.