Is City of Frederick Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

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

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	2013-07-01 → 2013-09-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2013-07-01 → 2013-09-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2013-07-01 → 2013-09-30
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2009-10-01
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2009-10-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2008-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2008-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2008-07-01
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2008-04-01 → 2008-04-30
MR	Monitoring	Resolved	2008-04-01 → 2008-04-30

PFAS detected

PFAS are industrial “forever chemicals”. These are the EPA's latest nationwide test results (2023–2025).

Contaminant	Max	Detection rate	Period
Pfpea	0.0031 µg/L	1/16	2024

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
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	79.52 µg/L 133% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 60 µg/L worst single sample: 110.8 µg/L	270/270	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	101.125 µg/L 126% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 80 µg/L worst single sample: 185.8 µg/L	266/266	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	13.56 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 18.8 µg/L	135/136	SYR4	2012–2019
Chloroform	82.17 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 120 µg/L	135/136	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	48.78 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 58 µg/L	119/119	SYR4	2012–2015
Trichloroacetic Acid	41.11 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 52.6 µg/L	119/119	SYR4	2012–2015
Dibromochloromethane	4.32 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 8.2 µg/L	100/135	SYR4	2012–2019
Fluoride	880 µg/L 22% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 940 µg/L	48/48	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	5.08 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 6.1 µg/L	37/119	SYR4	2012–2015
Dibromoacetic Acid	2.08 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 2.3 µg/L	23/119	SYR4	2012–2015
Barium	40.75 µg/L 2% of the EPA limit 2000 µg/L worst single sample: 50 µg/L	22/30	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate	3345 µg/L 33% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 3400 µg/L	22/30	SYR4	2012–2017
Atrazine	1.4915 µg/L 50% of the EPA limit 3 µg/L worst single sample: 1.67 µg/L	18/56	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate-Nitrite	2630 µg/L 26% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 3400 µg/L	15/21	SYR4	2014–2019
Lead	0.0011 mg/L 7.3% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	14/14	LCR	2021
Simazine	0.9415 µg/L 24% of the EPA limit 4 µg/L worst single sample: 1.05 µg/L	8/56	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	0.8940 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 0.9000 µg/L	2/134	SYR4	2012–2018
Ethylene Dibromide	0.0100 µg/L 20% of the EPA limit 0.0500 µg/L	2/29	SYR4	2012–2018
Hexachlorocyclopentadiene	0.2695 µg/L 0.5% of the EPA limit 50 µg/L worst single sample: 0.2700 µg/L	2/56	SYR4	2012–2019
Monobromoacetic Acid	2.05 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 2.1 µg/L	2/119	SYR4	2012–2015
1,2-DIBROMO-3-CHLOROPROPANE	0.0100 µg/L 5% of the EPA limit 0.2000 µg/L	1/29	SYR4	2012–2018
Gross Beta Particle Activity	4 pCi/L No EPA limit set	1/3	SYR4	2012–2014

81 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, TotalArsenicBhc-GammaBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneBeryllium, TotalChlorobenzeneCadmiumCarbofuranCarbon TetrachlorideChlordaneChromiumDichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDi(2-ethylhexyl) PhthalateDinosebEndrinEthylbenzeneGross Alpha, Excl. Radon And UHexachlorobenzeneHfpo-DaHeptachlorHeptachlor EpoxideLassoMercuryMethoxychlorNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaNitriteOxamylPfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSeleniumStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTolueneTotal Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB)ToxapheneTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneLithiumO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: ROSENBERG, ROBERT
Phone: 301-600-1754
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about City of Frederick

Is City of Frederick tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 23 contaminants in City of Frederick'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 Frederick's water?

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

How many people does City of Frederick serve?

City of Frederick reports serving 54,000 people in Maryland, per its EPA record.

Has City of Frederick had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 10 violations on file for City of Frederick, of which 5 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.