Community Water System · PWS IL0310720

Ford Heights

Ford Heights, Illinois 60411 - drinking water served from surface water sources to 1,813 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

Compiled by PlainWater Editorial, Drinking Water Quality Editorial Team · May 15, 2026

1,813
People served: 577
EPA violations: 44
Health-based: Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 577 drinking-water violations at Ford Heights, 8% of them health-based - above the Illinois per-system average.

577
Total EPA violations on record: 8%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure): 1,813
People served by this system: N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Ford Heights

Ford Heights is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 1,813 residents in Ford Heights, Illinois (Cook County) through 694 service connections. Its water is drawn from surface water sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 577 total violations for this system , of which 44 (8%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 483 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2025.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Coliform (TCR), recorded in 132 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%).

Ford Heights's 577 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

1,813

Total Violations

577

Health-Based Violations

Water Source

Surface Water

System Details

System Type: Community
Owner Type: Local
Connections: 694
County: Cook
School/Daycare: No
MCL Violations: 34
Monitoring Violations: 483
Treatment Tech Violations: 10

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant	Category	Count	Latest
Coliform (TCR)	MR	132	2012
Chlorine	MR	49	2018
TTHM	MR	30	2024
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	MR	30	2024
Coliform (TCR)	MCL	28	2002
Public Notice	Other	14	2013
Lead and Copper Rule	MR	11	2020
Lead and Copper Rule	TT	10	1999
cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene	MR	8	1995
o-Dichlorobenzene	MR	8	1995
p-Dichlorobenzene	MR	8	1995
1,2-Dichloroethane	MR	8	1995
1,1,1-Trichloroethane	MR	8	1995
Carbon tetrachloride	MR	8	1995
1,2-Dichloropropane	MR	8	1995
Tetrachloroethylene	MR	8	1995
CHLOROBENZENE	MR	8	1995
Ethylbenzene	MR	8	1995
Styrene	MR	8	1995
1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene	MR	8	1995
DICHLOROMETHANE	MR	8	1995
Xylenes, Total	MR	8	1995
1,1-Dichloroethylene	MR	8	1995
Benzene	MR	8	1995
trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene	MR	8	1995
1,1,2-Trichloroethane	MR	8	1995
Toluene	MR	8	1995
Trichloroethylene	MR	8	1995
Consumer Confidence Rule	Other	7	2025
Fluoride	MCL	6	1997

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 Ford Heights.

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 IL0310720 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 Ford Heights 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
2025	Consumer Confidence Rule	Other	7	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 7000
2025	LEAD AND COPPER RULE REVISIONS	RPT	2	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 5200
2024	TTHM	MR	30	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 2950
2024	Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	MR	30	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 2456
2020	Lead and Copper Rule	MR	11	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 5000
2018	Chlorine	MR	49	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 0999
2018	Revised Total Coliform Rule	MON	4	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 8000
2013	Public Notice	Other	14	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 7500
2012	Coliform (TCR)	MR	132	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 3100
2002	Coliform (TCR)	MCL	28	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 3100
1999	Lead and Copper Rule	TT	10	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 5000
1997	Fluoride	MCL	6	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 1025
1995	cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene	MR	8	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 2380
1995	o-Dichlorobenzene	MR	8	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 2968
1995	p-Dichlorobenzene	MR	8	SDWIS / IL0310720 / 2969

How Ford Heights Compares

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

Metric	Ford Heights	Illinois avg	Federal benchmark
Total violations	577	69.4	SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations	44	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	1,813	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 Ford Heights water safe to drink? ▼

Ford Heights (PWS ID: IL0310720) has 577 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 1,813 people using Surface Water sources.

How many people does Ford Heights serve? ▼

Ford Heights serves 1,813 people in Ford Heights, Illinois. It is a Local-owned system using Surface Water water sources with 694 service connections.

What type of violations does Ford Heights have? ▼

Ford Heights has 577 total violations: 44 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 483 monitoring/reporting violations, and 10 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.

Has PFAS been detected in Ford Heights water? ▼

No PFAS testing data is available for Ford Heights under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.

What water source does Ford Heights use? ▼

Ford Heights uses Surface Water 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.