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Community Water System · PWS IL0110550

Malden

Malden, Illinois 61337 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 318 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

318
People served
87
EPA violations
10
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 87 drinking-water violations at Malden, 11% of them health-based - above the Illinois per-system average.

87
Total EPA violations on record
11%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
318
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Malden

Malden is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 318 residents in Malden, Illinois (Bureau County) through 157 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 87 total violations for this system , of which 10 (11%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 58 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2021.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Coliform (TCR), recorded in 17 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 Illinois, EPA tracks 5,117 public water systems serving 12,576,876 people, with 355,322 cumulative violations and 52,932 health-based violations on record. About 81% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 69.4 violations. Statewide, 199 of 487 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (40.9%).

Malden's 87 violations sit above the Illinois 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
318
Total Violations
87
Health-Based Violations
10
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
157
County
Bureau
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
5
Monitoring Violations
58
Treatment Tech Violations
5

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Coliform (TCR) MR 17 2006
Lead and Copper Rule MR 14 2013
Chlorine MR 10 2020
Nitrate MR 8 2020
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 6 2010
Coliform (TCR) MCL 5 1995
Nitrite MR 4 2011
Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 4 2019
Public Notice Other 3 2021
Revised Total Coliform Rule TT 3 2021
Lead and Copper Rule TT 2 1995
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 1 1977

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 Malden.

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 IL0110550 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Illinois Drinking Water Authority

Illinois EPA, Bureau of Water is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Malden under EPA-delegated authority.

Open IL regulator portal

Source: Illinois EPA, Bureau of Water

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
2021 Public Notice Other 3 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 7500
2021 Revised Total Coliform Rule TT 3 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 8000
2020 Chlorine MR 10 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 0999
2020 Nitrate MR 8 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 1040
2019 Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 4 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 8000
2013 Lead and Copper Rule MR 14 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 5000
2011 Nitrite MR 4 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 1041
2010 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 6 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 7000
2006 Coliform (TCR) MR 17 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 3100
1995 Coliform (TCR) MCL 5 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 3100
1995 Lead and Copper Rule TT 2 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 5000
1977 Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 1 SDWIS / IL0110550 / 4000

How Malden Compares

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

Metric Malden Illinois avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 87 69.4 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 10 10.3 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 40.9% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 318 2,458 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 5,117 regulated public water systems in Illinois.

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 Malden water safe to drink? ▼
Malden (PWS ID: IL0110550) has 87 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 318 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Malden serve? ▼
Malden serves 318 people in Malden, Illinois. It is a Local-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 157 service connections.
What type of violations does Malden have? ▼
Malden has 87 total violations: 10 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 58 monitoring/reporting violations, and 5 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Malden water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Malden under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Malden use? ▼
Malden uses Groundwater as its primary water source. It is classified as a Community Water System (CWS), serving residential populations year-round.
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.