States → South Carolina
State profile · EPA SDWIS + UCMR5
South Carolina Drinking Water Quality
1,390 public water systems serve 4,709,324 people across South Carolina, with every Safe Drinking Water Act violation and UCMR5 PFAS result on record.
- 1,390
- Water systems
- 38,355
- Total violations
- 65.3%
- Systems w/ a violation
- 65.2%
- PFAS detection rate
The verdict
Across South Carolina, 908 of 1,390 water systems (65.3%) carry at least one EPA violation, and 107 of 164 UCMR5-tested systems show PFAS.
- 38,355
- Total EPA violations on record
- 25%
- Health-based (MCL / treatment)
- 65.3%
- Systems with ≥1 violation
- 65.2%
- UCMR5 PFAS detection rate
Water Systems
1,390
Total Violations
38,355
Violation Rate
65.3%
PFAS Detection
65.2%
107 of 164 tested
Violation Composition
How South Carolina's 38,355 violations break down by type, per EPA SDWIS classification.
Health-based (9,705) Monitoring/Reporting (28,650)
| Metric | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Public water systems | 1,390 | - |
| Population served | 4,709,324 | - |
| Total violations | 38,355 | 100% |
| Health-based violations | 9,705 | 25.3% |
| Systems with violations | 908 | 65.3% |
| PFAS detection rate | 107 of 164 | 65.2% |
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
Greenville Water (2310001)
Greenville, SC · 396,265 served
Charleston Water System (Sc1010001)
Charleston, SC · 327,422 served
Columbia City of (Sc4010001)
Columbia, SC · 319,500 served
Gsw&sa (Sc2620004)
Conway, SC · 247,550 served
Bjw&sa (0720003)
Okatie, SC · 145,634 served
Spartanburg Water System (4210001)
Spartanburg, SC · 140,024 served
Bcwsa Sangaree W/D (0820002)
Moncks Corner, SC · 95,345 served
Mt Pleasant Water Works (1010002)
Mount Pleasant, SC · 91,500 served
Sjwd Middle Tyger WTP (4220006)
Lyman, SC · 87,259 served
Rock Hill City of (Sc4610002)
Rock Hill, SC · 82,846 served
Summerville Cpw (Sc1810003)
Summerville, SC · 81,750 served
Florence City of (Sc2110001)
Florence, SC · 79,745 served
Lancaster County W&SD (Sc2920001)
Lancaster, SC · 79,107 served
Greer Cpw (Sc2310005)
Greer, SC · 53,602 served
Sumter City of (Sc4310001)
Sumter, SC · 53,070 served
Darlington County W&sa (Sc1620001)
Darlington, SC · 52,288 served
Myrtle Beach City of (Sc2610001)
Myrtle Beach, SC · 50,930 served
Greenwood Cpw (2410001)
Greenwood, SC · 49,632 served
Joint Municipal WSC (Sc3220003)
Lexington, SC · 47,838 served
Orangeburg Dpu (Sc3810001)
Orangeburg, SC · 46,896 served
Most Violations
#1 Bgwc Charleswood S/D (4050008) Elgin
1,678 #2 Bgwc Purdy Shores (0150014) Elgin
780 #3 Bgwc Lexington Estates (Sc3250050) Elgin
780 #4 Bgwc Shiloh Quarters (Sc4660092) Elgin
715 #5 Bgwc Lakewood (Sc0450065) Elgin
475 #6 Bgwc Farrowwood Estates (Sc4050012) Elgin
468 #7 Bgwc Oakridge Hunt Club (Sc4050019) Elgin
467 #8 Bgwc Middlestream (Sc4650052) Elgin
464 #9 Bgwc Lessliedale (Sc4660095) Elgin
464 #10 Bgwc Washington Heights (Sc4050013) Elgin
461 #11 Bgwc Lexington Farms (Sc3250069) Elgin
460 #12 Bgwc Springfield Acres (Sc4050006) Elgin
456 #13 Bgwc Harmon Hill Estates (Sc4050011) Elgin
456 #14 Bgwc Oakland Plantation (Sc4350006) Elgin
434 #15 Bgwc Silver Lakes-Windwood (Sc4650034) Elgin
424 Counties in South Carolina
Greenville
45 systems · 498,460 served
· 567 violations
Charleston
74 systems · 480,067 served
· 846 violations
Horry
53 systems · 416,612 served
· 307 violations
Richland
77 systems · 361,654 served
· 5,612 violations
Spartanburg
29 systems · 318,077 served
· 154 violations
Anderson
40 systems · 206,616 served
· 1,334 violations
Beaufort
45 systems · 203,764 served
· 537 violations
York
137 systems · 202,935 served
· 8,274 violations
Lexington
135 systems · 176,237 served
· 6,415 violations
Dorchester
56 systems · 164,012 served
· 369 violations
Berkeley
63 systems · 162,162 served
· 576 violations
Aiken
63 systems · 153,654 served
· 1,188 violations
Pickens
46 systems · 133,635 served
· 545 violations
Florence
24 systems · 101,758 served
· 194 violations
Oconee
56 systems · 99,852 served
· 837 violations
Lancaster
8 systems · 96,836 served
· 231 violations
Sumter
24 systems · 84,388 served
· 1,103 violations
Kershaw
11 systems · 71,420 served
· 235 violations
Georgetown
24 systems · 70,899 served
· 318 violations
Darlington
6 systems · 69,227 served
· 155 violations
Orangeburg
33 systems · 65,626 served
· 530 violations
Laurens
11 systems · 59,423 served
· 335 violations
Greenwood
17 systems · 56,330 served
· 265 violations
Cherokee
8 systems · 54,307 served
· 164 violations
Chesterfield
12 systems · 44,401 served
· 373 violations
Marion
6 systems · 34,320 served
· 69 violations
Union
9 systems · 30,650 served
· 356 violations
Edgefield
9 systems · 29,621 served
· 113 violations
Dillon
6 systems · 28,656 served
· 51 violations
Newberry
13 systems · 23,393 served
· 562 violations
Showing top 30 of 46 counties.
Drinking Water Guides
Frequently Asked Questions
How many water systems are in South Carolina? ▼
South Carolina has 1,390 public water systems serving approximately 4,709,324 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 South Carolina? ▼
South Carolina has 38,355 total drinking water violations on record, with 9,705 classified as health-based violations. 65.3% of water systems in the state have at least one violation.
Has PFAS been found in South Carolina drinking water? ▼
Of 164 water systems tested for PFAS in South Carolina, 107 had PFAS detected, a 65.2% detection rate. PFAS are persistent "forever chemicals" that do not break down in the environment.
What is the violation rate for South Carolina water systems? ▼
South Carolina's violation rate is 65.3%. 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 South Carolina 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.