Is Helena Water Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

Water source: Surface water
Ownership: Local government
Counties served: Lewis and Clark

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	2023-01-01 → 2023-03-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2023-01-01 → 2023-03-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2023-01-01 → 2023-03-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-10-01 → 2022-12-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-10-01 → 2022-12-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-10-01 → 2022-12-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-07-01 → 2022-09-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-07-01 → 2022-09-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-07-01 → 2022-09-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2008-09-01 → 2008-09-30

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
Chloroform	74.4 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 91 µg/L	137/138	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	77.4 µg/L 97% of the EPA limit 80 µg/L worst single sample: 99 µg/L	137/138	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	11 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 12 µg/L	134/138	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	71.1 µg/L 118% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 60 µg/L worst single sample: 92 µg/L	119/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	30.8 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 49 µg/L	113/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	34 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 40 µg/L	112/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Copper	557 µg/L 43% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 1060 µg/L	105/105	SYR4	2012–2018
Monochloroacetic Acid	6.88 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 8.3 µg/L	79/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	3.045 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 3.6 µg/L	72/138	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate-Nitrite	1360 µg/L 14% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 1580 µg/L	54/58	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	8 µg/L 53% of the EPA limit 15 µg/L worst single sample: 19 µg/L	50/105	SYR4	2012–2018
Dibromoacetic Acid	0.9820 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.2 µg/L	47/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Arsenic	23.2 µg/L 232% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 10 µg/L worst single sample: 31 µg/L	29/31	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	0.0030 mg/L 20% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	15/15	LCR	2024
Monobromoacetic Acid	1.86 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.9 µg/L	9/119	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	1.17 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.2 µg/L	7/138	SYR4	2012–2019
Fluoride	710 µg/L 18% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 800 µg/L	4/6	SYR4	2012–2017
Lithium	78 µg/L No EPA limit set	3/9	UCMR-5	2024
Combined Uranium	2.95 µg/L 9.8% of the EPA limit 30 µg/L worst single sample: 3 µg/L	2/3	SYR4	2017
Cadmium	2 µg/L 40% of the EPA limit 5 µg/L	1/6	SYR4	2012–2017
Carbofuran	40 µg/L 100% of the EPA limit 40 µg/L	1/9	SYR4	2012–2017
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon And U	2.2 pCi/L 15% of the EPA limit 15 pCi/L	1/3	SYR4	2017
Oxamyl	200 µg/L 100% of the EPA limit 200 µg/L	1/9	SYR4	2012–2017
trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene	0.5700 µg/L 0.6% of the EPA limit 100 µg/L	1/19	SYR4	2012–2019

79 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, TotalAsbestosAtrazineBhc-GammaBariumBenzeneBenzo(A)PyreneBeryllium, TotalChlorobenzeneCarbon TetrachlorideChlordaneChromiumCombined Radium (-226 And -228)DichloromethaneDalaponDi(2-ethylhexyl) AdipateDi(2-ethylhexyl) PhthalateDinosebEndrinEthylbenzeneHexachlorobenzeneHfpo-DaHeptachlorHeptachlor EpoxideHexachlorocyclopentadieneLassoMercuryMethoxychlorNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaPfbaPFBSPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPfhxaPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpeaPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaPentachlorophenolPicloramSeleniumSimazineStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTolueneToxapheneTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzene

Utility contact

Contact: SANDERSON, JANICE R
Phone: 406-457-8512

Frequently asked questions about Helena Water

Is Helena Water tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 24 contaminants in Helena Water'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 Helena Water's water?

EPA monitoring detected Chloroform, TTHM, Bromodichloromethane, 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 Helena Water serve?

Helena Water reports serving 32,091 people in Montana, per its EPA record.

Has Helena Water had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 66 violations on file for Helena Water, 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.