Is Tahlequah Pwa Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

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

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
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2024-10-17
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2024-10-17
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	2022-10-01 → 2022-12-31
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-04-01 → 2022-06-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-04-01 → 2022-06-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-04-01 → 2022-06-30
MCL	Health-based	Resolved	2022-04-01 → 2022-06-30

PFAS detected

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

Contaminant	Max	Detection rate	Period
PFBS	0.0057 µg/L	5/8	2024
Pfpea	0.0044 µg/L	3/8	2024
Pfhxa	0.0042 µg/L	1/8	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
Copper	373.8 µg/L 29% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L worst single sample: 736 µg/L	205/240	SYR4	2012–2017
Fluoride	1010 µg/L 25% of the EPA limit 4000 µg/L worst single sample: 1190 µg/L	177/178	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromodichloromethane	17.68 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 26.1 µg/L	145/145	SYR4	2012–2019
Chloroform	54.3 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 156 µg/L	145/145	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	7.6185 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 10.7 µg/L	144/145	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	80.22 µg/L 100% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 80 µg/L worst single sample: 125 µg/L	133/133	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	67.92 µg/L 113% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 60 µg/L worst single sample: 120 µg/L	133/133	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	34.9 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 98.9 µg/L	121/121	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	28.5 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 50.9 µg/L	121/121	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromoacetic Acid	2.06 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 2.12 µg/L	72/121	SYR4	2012–2019
Chlorite	862 µg/L 86% of the EPA limit 1000 µg/L worst single sample: 1040 µg/L	61/180	SYR4	2012–2019
Nitrate-Nitrite	2332.5 µg/L 23% of the EPA limit 10000 µg/L worst single sample: 2550 µg/L	36/40	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	9.512 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 9.6 µg/L	17/121	SYR4	2012–2019
Gross Beta Particle Activity	3.727 pCi/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 3.79 pCi/L	15/15	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	1.5235 µg/L No EPA limit set worst single sample: 1.53 µg/L	14/145	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	0.0 mg/L 0% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	14/14	LCR	2023
Combined Radium (-226 And -228)	1.445 pCi/L 29% of the EPA limit 5 pCi/L worst single sample: 1.86 pCi/L	11/15	SYR4	2012–2019
Barium	42.65 µg/L 2.1% of the EPA limit 2000 µg/L worst single sample: 44 µg/L	10/11	SYR4	2012–2019
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon And U	0.7992 pCi/L 5.3% of the EPA limit 15 pCi/L worst single sample: 0.9260 pCi/L	9/15	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	23.34 µg/L 156% of the EPA limit, at the 95th percentile of samples — 15 µg/L worst single sample: 25.5 µg/L	4/240	SYR4	2012–2017
Monobromoacetic Acid	1.82 µg/L No EPA limit set	1/121	SYR4	2012–2019

58 contaminants tested, none detected

1,1,1-Trichloroethane1,1,2-Trichloroethane1,1-Dichloroethylene1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene1,2-Dichloroethane1,2-Dichloropropane11Cl-PF3OUdS4:2 Fts6:2 Fts8:2 Fts9Cl-PF3ONSAdonaAntimony, TotalArsenicAsbestosBenzeneBeryllium, TotalChlorobenzeneCadmiumCarbon TetrachlorideChromiumCombined UraniumDichloromethaneEthylbenzeneHfpo-DaMercuryNetfosaaNfdhaNmefosaaPfbaPfdaPfdoaPfeesaPfhpaPfhpsPFHXSPfmbaPfmpaPFNAPFOAPFOSPfpesPftaPftrdaPfunaSeleniumStyreneTetrachloroethyleneThallium, TotalTolueneTrichloroethyleneVinyl ChlorideXylenes, Totalcis-1,2-DichloroethyleneLithiumO-DichlorobenzeneP-Dichlorobenzenetrans-1,2-Dichloroethylene

Utility contact

Contact: TAHLEQUAH PWA
Phone: 918-456-2564
Email: [email protected]

Frequently asked questions about Tahlequah Pwa

Is Tahlequah Pwa tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 24 contaminants in Tahlequah Pwa'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 Tahlequah Pwa's water?

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

How many people does Tahlequah Pwa serve?

Tahlequah Pwa reports serving 14,458 people in Oklahoma, per its EPA record.

Has Tahlequah Pwa had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 74 violations on file for Tahlequah Pwa, of which 60 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.