States → Georgia
State profile · EPA SDWIS + UCMR5
Georgia Drinking Water Quality
2,382 public water systems serve 10,694,477 people across Georgia, with every Safe Drinking Water Act violation and UCMR5 PFAS result on record.
- 2,382
- Water systems
- 108,966
- Total violations
- 92.1%
- Systems w/ a violation
- 40.2%
- PFAS detection rate
The verdict
Across Georgia, 2,194 of 2,382 water systems (92.1%) carry at least one EPA violation, and 102 of 254 UCMR5-tested systems show PFAS.
- 108,966
- Total EPA violations on record
- 11%
- Health-based (MCL / treatment)
- 92.1%
- Systems with ≥1 violation
- 40.2%
- UCMR5 PFAS detection rate
Water Systems
2,382
Total Violations
108,966
Violation Rate
92.1%
PFAS Detection
40.2%
102 of 254 tested
Violation Composition
How Georgia's 108,966 violations break down by type, per EPA SDWIS classification.
Health-based (12,032) Monitoring/Reporting (96,934)
| Metric | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Public water systems | 2,382 | - |
| Population served | 10,694,477 | - |
| Total violations | 108,966 | 100% |
| Health-based violations | 12,032 | 11.0% |
| Systems with violations | 2,194 | 92.1% |
| PFAS detection rate | 102 of 254 | 40.2% |
Health-based violations indicate the contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) or treatment-technique requirement. Monitoring/reporting violations indicate procedural issues (missed tests, late reports) - not necessarily a contamination event.
Largest Water Systems
Atlanta
Atlanta, GA · 1,089,893 served
Gwinnett Co. Dept. of Water Resources
Lawrenceville, GA · 975,000 served
Dekalb County
Decatur, GA · 743,000 served
Cobb County
Marietta, GA · 695,000 served
North Fulton County
Alpharetta, GA · 434,517 served
Clayton County Water Authority
Morrow, GA · 298,374 served
Columbus
Columbus, GA · 229,000 served
Cherokee County
Canton, GA · 224,427 served
Augusta-Richmond Co WS
Augusta, GA · 204,000 served
Henry County Water Authority
Jackson, GA · 176,038 served
Savannah-Main
Port Wentworth, GA · 168,958 served
Forsyth Co. Water & Sewer
Cumming, GA · 161,200 served
Gainesville
City of Gainesville, GA · 140,000 served
Macon Water Authority
Macon, GA · 130,024 served
Athens-Clarke Co Water System
Athens, GA · 125,000 served
Columbia County
Grovetown, GA · 124,763 served
Paulding County Water System
Dallas, GA · 117,468 served
Douglasville-Douglas County Wsa
Douglasville, GA · 110,219 served
Albany
Albany, GA · 101,245 served
Dalton Utilities
Dalton, GA · 99,315 served
Most Violations
#1 Pine Terrace Mobile Home Park Thomasville
1,302 #2 Petross Midway
1,289 #3 Lmb Enterprises Statesboro, GA
1,061 #4 Three Rivers Estates Twin City
1,017 #5 Countryview Mobile Home Park Valdosta
876 #6 Southern Hills MHP Thomasville
838 #7 Arlington Terrace MHP Americus
580 #8 Lazy River Estates Twin City
571 #9 Graystone Village Thomasville
550 #10 Koinonia-Forest Park Americus
496 #11 Koinonia Village Americus
479 #12 Lone Oak Water System Lone Oak
456 #13 Country Circle Subdivision Albany
427 #14 Cranston Bluff-Waterford Landing Savannah
409 #15 Sherwood Mobile Hamlet Valdosta
401 Counties in Georgia
Fulton
11 systems · 1,636,505 served
· 332 violations
Gwinnett
4 systems · 984,825 served
· 322 violations
Cobb
5 systems · 803,382 served
· 38 violations
DeKalb
1 systems · 743,000 served
· 8 violations
Chatham
118 systems · 340,164 served
· 3,877 violations
Clayton
3 systems · 298,499 served
· 272 violations
Cherokee
10 systems · 273,696 served
· 364 violations
Houston
10 systems · 246,533 served
· 235 violations
Muscogee
4 systems · 229,453 served
· 15 violations
Forsyth
8 systems · 222,696 served
· 347 violations
Henry
8 systems · 218,714 served
· 444 violations
Richmond
8 systems · 213,307 served
· 601 violations
Coweta
15 systems · 154,858 served
· 1,243 violations
Hall
13 systems · 151,897 served
· 494 violations
Columbia
10 systems · 145,151 served
· 409 violations
Bibb
4 systems · 130,597 served
· 177 violations
Clarke
11 systems · 127,468 served
· 883 violations
Paulding
3 systems · 123,096 served
· 76 violations
Douglas
1 systems · 110,219 served
· 6 violations
Bartow
12 systems · 107,549 served
· 523 violations
Carroll
10 systems · 107,402 served
· 615 violations
Dougherty
7 systems · 105,423 served
· 197 violations
Fayette
13 systems · 105,265 served
· 989 violations
Whitfield
1 systems · 99,315 served
· 11 violations
Floyd
8 systems · 98,457 served
· 162 violations
Lowndes
78 systems · 96,289 served
· 5,087 violations
Newton
13 systems · 95,877 served
· 575 violations
Glynn
63 systems · 90,859 served
· 1,886 violations
Rockdale
5 systems · 90,172 served
· 381 violations
Jackson
13 systems · 89,346 served
· 718 violations
Showing top 30 of 159 counties.
Drinking Water Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many water systems are in Georgia? ▼
Georgia has 2,382 public water systems serving approximately 10,694,477 people. These include community water systems, non-transient non-community systems, and transient non-community systems regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
How many drinking water violations are in Georgia? ▼
Georgia has 108,966 total drinking water violations on record, with 12,032 classified as health-based violations. 92.1% of water systems in the state have at least one violation.
Has PFAS been found in Georgia drinking water? ▼
Of 254 water systems tested for PFAS in Georgia, 102 had PFAS detected, a 40.2% detection rate. PFAS are persistent "forever chemicals" that do not break down in the environment.
What is the violation rate for Georgia water systems? ▼
Georgia's violation rate is 92.1%. This measures the percentage of public water systems that have at least one recorded violation in the EPA SDWIS database, including both health-based and monitoring/reporting violations.
Where does this Georgia water data come from? ▼
All drinking water data comes from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) and the UCMR5 PFAS monitoring program. SDWIS is the federal database that tracks compliance for all public water systems regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Data Sources & Methodology
Drinking water violation data from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS). PFAS testing data from the UCMR5 monitoring program. SDWIS tracks all public water systems regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Related
Data sourced from EPA SDWIS and UCMR5 PFAS monitoring data. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainWater Editorial
Every figure on PlainWater is rendered directly from EPA SDWIS drinking-water data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on EPA SDWIS data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.