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Transient Non-Community Water System · PWS CO0354273

Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area

Steamboat Springs, Colorado 80487 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 400 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

400
People served
23
EPA violations
0
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 23 drinking-water violations at Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area - below the Colorado per-system average.

23
Total EPA violations on record
0%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
400
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area

Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area is a federal-owned transient non-community water system that delivers drinking water to 400 residents in Steamboat Springs, Colorado (Routt County) through 5 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 23 total violations for this system , of which 0 (0%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 20 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2019.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Coliform (TCR), recorded in 7 violations (MR). This system has not yet been sampled under EPA's UCMR5 PFAS monitoring program, so no PFAS detection data is available here.

Across Colorado, EPA tracks 2,193 public water systems serving 7,473,456 people, with 238,796 cumulative violations and 30,589 health-based violations on record. About 93% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 108.9 violations. Statewide, 98 of 163 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (60.1%).

Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area's 23 violations sit below the Colorado average.

All figures above are sourced directly from EPA SDWIS and UCMR5 public data releases and are updated as EPA publishes new reporting cycles.

Population Served
400
Total Violations
23
Health-Based Violations
0
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Transient Non-Community
Owner Type
Federal
Connections
5
County
Routt
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
0
Monitoring Violations
20
Treatment Tech Violations
0

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Coliform (TCR) MR 7 2009
Nitrate MR 7 2010
Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 6 2019
Revised Total Coliform Rule RPT 3 2016

Verify This Water System

The figures above are aggregated from EPA's public databases. To verify the underlying records, or to file a complaint, request a Consumer Confidence Report, or check current monitoring status, go directly to the federal and state regulators that enforce the Safe Drinking Water Act for Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area.

Federal Source of Truth

EPA SDWIS, Federal Reports

EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) holds the federal compliance record for every regulated public water system. Open the system-level report by PWS ID:

View PWS ID CO0354273 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Colorado Drinking Water Authority

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Water Quality Control is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area under EPA-delegated authority.

Open CO regulator portal

Source: Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Water Quality Control

Violation Timeline

Each row links to the EPA SDWIS public record for verification. Cross-reference the contaminant code on EPA's federal report to see violation dates, return-to-compliance status, and enforcement actions.

Year (latest) Contaminant Category Count EPA Record
2019 Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 6 SDWIS / CO0354273 / 8000
2016 Revised Total Coliform Rule RPT 3 SDWIS / CO0354273 / 8000
2010 Nitrate MR 7 SDWIS / CO0354273 / 1040
2009 Coliform (TCR) MR 7 SDWIS / CO0354273 / 3100

How Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area Compares

Cross-reference this system's record against state averages and the federal MCL framework for context.

Metric Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area Colorado avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 23 108.9 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 0 13.9 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 60.1% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 400 3,408 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 2,193 regulated public water systems in Colorado.

Federal MCL reference, Safe Drinking Water Act thresholds ▼
Contaminant Federal MCL / Action Level Note
Lead 0 mg/L (Action Level: 0.015 mg/L) Lead and Copper Rule treatment technique
Arsenic 0.010 mg/L (10 ppb) Health-based MCL since 2006
Total Coliform Treatment technique (RTCR) Indicator organism, monitoring trigger
PFOA / PFOS (PFAS) 4.0 ppt each (final 2024 rule) Compliance deadline 2029 (EPA proposed extending to 2031, not yet final as of May 2026)
Nitrate (as N) 10 mg/L Acute health risk for infants

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area water safe to drink? ▼
Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area (PWS ID: CO0354273) has 23 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 400 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area serve? ▼
Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area serves 400 people in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It is a Federal-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 5 service connections.
What type of violations does Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area have? ▼
Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area has 23 total violations: 0 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 20 monitoring/reporting violations, and 0 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area use? ▼
Fish Creek Falls Recreation Area uses Groundwater as its primary water source. It is classified as a Transient Non-Community Water System, serving transient populations.
Where does this data come from? ▼
All data comes from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) and the UCMR5 PFAS monitoring program. SDWIS tracks compliance for all public water systems regulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act.
Data Sources: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), Q4 2025. This data is provided for informational purposes only.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

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 system's figures are rendered directly from 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.