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Community Water System · PWS IL0670250

Carthage

Carthage, Illinois 62321 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 2,510 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

2,510
People served
250
EPA violations
69
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 250 drinking-water violations at Carthage, 28% of them health-based - above the Illinois per-system average.

250
Total EPA violations on record
28%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
2,510
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Carthage

Carthage is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 2,510 residents in Carthage, Illinois (Hancock County) through 1,300 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 250 total violations for this system , of which 69 (28%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 144 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 Surface Water Treatment Rule, recorded in 25 violations (TT, health-based). 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%).

Carthage's 250 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
2,510
Total Violations
250
Health-Based Violations
69
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
1,300
County
Hancock
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
44
Monitoring Violations
144
Treatment Tech Violations
25

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Surface Water Treatment Rule TT 25 2008
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MCL 19 2011
Atrazine MCL 15 2017
Coliform (TCR) MCL 10 2008
Coliform (TCR) MR 7 2004
CARBON, TOTAL MR 6 2008
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 5 2025
Surface Water Treatment Rule MR 4 1995
cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene MR 4 2002
o-Dichlorobenzene MR 4 2002
p-Dichlorobenzene MR 4 2002
1,2-Dichloroethane MR 4 2002
1,1,1-Trichloroethane MR 4 2002
Carbon tetrachloride MR 4 2002
Trichloroethylene MR 4 2002
Benzene MR 4 2002
Ethylbenzene MR 4 2002
Styrene MR 4 2002
2,4-D MR 4 2017
Thallium, Total MR 4 2020
Beryllium, Total MR 4 2020
Selenium MR 4 2020
1,1-Dichloroethylene MR 4 2002
1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene MR 4 2002
1,2-Dichloropropane MR 4 2002
Xylenes, Total MR 4 2002
Toluene MR 4 2002
trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene MR 4 2002
TTHM MR 4 2023
Antimony, Total MR 4 2020

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 Carthage.

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 IL0670250 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 Carthage 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 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 5 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 2456
2023 TTHM MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 2950
2022 Combined Radium (-226 and -228) MR 2 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 4010
2020 Thallium, Total MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1085
2020 Beryllium, Total MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1075
2020 Selenium MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1045
2020 Antimony, Total MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1074
2020 Nickel MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1036
2020 Barium MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1010
2020 Cadmium MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 1015
2017 Atrazine MCL 15 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 2050
2017 2,4-D MR 4 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 2105
2011 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MCL 19 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 2456
2009 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 2 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 7000
2008 Surface Water Treatment Rule TT 25 SDWIS / IL0670250 / 0200

How Carthage Compares

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

Metric Carthage Illinois avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 250 69.4 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 69 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 2,510 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 Carthage water safe to drink? ▼
Carthage (PWS ID: IL0670250) has 250 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 2,510 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Carthage serve? ▼
Carthage serves 2,510 people in Carthage, Illinois. It is a Local-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 1,300 service connections.
What type of violations does Carthage have? ▼
Carthage has 250 total violations: 69 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 144 monitoring/reporting violations, and 25 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Carthage water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Carthage under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Carthage use? ▼
Carthage 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.