States → New York
State profile · EPA SDWIS + UCMR5
New York Drinking Water Quality
8,098 public water systems serve 19,294,951 people across New York, with every Safe Drinking Water Act violation and UCMR5 PFAS result on record.
- 8,098
- Water systems
- 552,003
- Total violations
- 94.4%
- Systems w/ a violation
- 38.9%
- PFAS detection rate
The verdict
Across New York, 7,648 of 8,098 water systems (94.4%) carry at least one EPA violation, and 129 of 332 UCMR5-tested systems show PFAS.
- 552,003
- Total EPA violations on record
- 5%
- Health-based (MCL / treatment)
- 94.4%
- Systems with ≥1 violation
- 38.9%
- UCMR5 PFAS detection rate
Water Systems
8,098
Total Violations
552,003
Violation Rate
94.4%
PFAS Detection
38.9%
129 of 332 tested
Violation Composition
How New York's 552,003 violations break down by type, per EPA SDWIS classification.
Health-based (26,817) Monitoring/Reporting (525,186)
| Metric | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Public water systems | 8,098 | - |
| Population served | 19,294,951 | - |
| Total violations | 552,003 | 100% |
| Health-based violations | 26,817 | 4.9% |
| Systems with violations | 7,648 | 94.4% |
| PFAS detection rate | 129 of 332 | 38.9% |
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
New York City System
Valhalla, NY · 8,271,000 served
Suffolk County Water Authority
Hauppauge, NY · 1,100,000 served
McWa
Rochester, NY · 496,753 served
Ocwa
Syracuse, NY · 350,000 served
Ecwa Direct
Buffalo, NY · 335,000 served
Buffalo Water Authority
Buffalo, NY · 276,000 served
Veolia Water New York
West Nyack, NY · 270,000 served
Liberty Utilities New York - Lynbrook
Merrick, NY · 220,000 served
Rochester City
Rochester, NY · 214,000 served
Yonkers City
Yonkers, NY · 211,569 served
Syracuse City
Syracuse, NY · 192,000 served
Veolia Water New York, Inc. RD-1
West Nyack, NY · 146,732 served
Liberty Utilities New York - Merrick
Merrick, NY · 135,000 served
Mvwa - Mohawk Valley Water Authority
Utica, NY · 126,250 served
WA of Western Nassau
New Hyde Park, NY · 120,000 served
Town of Hempstead Water Department
East Meadow, NY · 110,000 served
Albany City
Albany, NY · 98,000 served
Latham Water District
Latham, NY · 85,590 served
South Huntington Water District
Centerport, NY · 81,760 served
Ecwa Amherst
Buffalo, NY · 80,228 served
Most Violations
#1 Quaker Creek Store Goshen
2,073 #2 Newburgh Consolidated WD Newburgh
1,884 #3 Yandos Apartments Dannemora
1,667 #4 Hunters Creek Mobile Home Park Orchard Park
1,596 #5 Johnnys Pizzeria Rock Tavern
1,543 #6 Manhasset Lakeville WD Great Neck
1,476 #7 Mapletree Apts Greenville
1,312 #8 Sleepy Hollow Mobile Park Poughkeepsie
1,307 #9 Orange County Estates, Inc Airmont
1,307 #10 Albertson WD Roslyn Heights
1,243 #11 Ausable Heights Water System Keeseville
1,225 #12 Mountain Lodge Park Developmen Washingtonville
1,161 #13 Scotts Corners Golf Course Walden
1,160 #14 17K Food Mart Poughkeepsie
1,153 #15 Wall Street Meadows West Winfield
1,063 Counties in New York
Richmond
1 systems · 8,271,000 served
· 47 violations
Suffolk
152 systems · 1,387,905 served
· 3,402 violations
Nassau
44 systems · 1,387,489 served
· 7,471 violations
Westchester
274 systems · 992,853 served
· 15,832 violations
Erie
108 systems · 955,615 served
· 7,606 violations
Onondaga
88 systems · 615,889 served
· 2,561 violations
Orleans
23 systems · 535,814 served
· 437 violations
Orange
449 systems · 409,417 served
· 85,938 violations
Rockland
49 systems · 325,504 served
· 947 violations
Albany
68 systems · 303,908 served
· 5,792 violations
Monroe
19 systems · 263,490 served
· 190 violations
Dutchess
550 systems · 258,307 served
· 28,815 violations
Niagara
21 systems · 223,670 served
· 128 violations
Oneida
127 systems · 204,352 served
· 10,444 violations
Saratoga
218 systems · 198,697 served
· 23,775 violations
Broome
170 systems · 182,088 served
· 3,720 violations
Schenectady
35 systems · 146,284 served
· 2,911 violations
Rensselaer
147 systems · 135,298 served
· 3,867 violations
Ulster
445 systems · 132,066 served
· 40,480 violations
Jefferson
154 systems · 129,617 served
· 2,971 violations
Sullivan
494 systems · 127,945 served
· 23,388 violations
Chautauqua
192 systems · 126,746 served
· 9,066 violations
Chemung
78 systems · 120,205 served
· 4,249 violations
Columbia
202 systems · 116,249 served
· 14,204 violations
Clinton
164 systems · 109,907 served
· 17,406 violations
Tompkins
112 systems · 102,994 served
· 1,977 violations
Oswego
166 systems · 99,982 served
· 11,456 violations
Ontario
53 systems · 92,863 served
· 3,446 violations
Wayne
34 systems · 86,692 served
· 2,331 violations
Warren
231 systems · 81,131 served
· 21,880 violations
Showing top 30 of 58 counties.
Drinking Water Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many water systems are in New York? ▼
New York has 8,098 public water systems serving approximately 19,294,951 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 New York? ▼
New York has 552,003 total drinking water violations on record, with 26,817 classified as health-based violations. 94.4% of water systems in the state have at least one violation.
Has PFAS been found in New York drinking water? ▼
Of 332 water systems tested for PFAS in New York, 129 had PFAS detected, a 38.9% detection rate. PFAS are persistent "forever chemicals" that do not break down in the environment.
What is the violation rate for New York water systems? ▼
New York's violation rate is 94.4%. 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 New York 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.