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Community Water System · PWS LA1119004

Cotton Valley Water System

Cotton Valley, Louisiana 71018-0415 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 1,380 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

1,380
People served
252
EPA violations
42
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 252 drinking-water violations at Cotton Valley Water System, 17% of them health-based - above the Louisiana per-system average.

252
Total EPA violations on record
17%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
1,380
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Cotton Valley Water System

Cotton Valley Water System is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 1,380 residents in Cotton Valley, Louisiana (Webster Parish County) through 460 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 252 total violations for this system , of which 42 (17%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 68 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2024.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Consumer Confidence Rule, recorded in 77 violations (Other). This system has not yet been sampled under EPA's UCMR5 PFAS monitoring program, so no PFAS detection data is available here.

Across Louisiana, EPA tracks 1,234 public water systems serving 5,316,532 people, with 115,060 cumulative violations and 62,164 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 93.2 violations. Statewide, 218 of 265 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (82.3%).

Cotton Valley Water System's 252 violations sit above the Louisiana 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
1,380
Total Violations
252
Health-Based Violations
42
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
460
County
Webster Parish
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
9
Monitoring Violations
68
Treatment Tech Violations
33

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 77 2024
Public Notice Other 47 2020
Groundwater Rule TT 33 2020
TTHM MR 20 2015
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 20 2015
Lead and Copper Rule MR 16 2023
Coliform (TCR) MCL 9 2003
Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 4 2017
Chlorine MR 4 2017
Coliform (TCR) MR 4 2015

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 Cotton Valley Water System.

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 LA1119004 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Louisiana Drinking Water Authority

Louisiana's primacy agency administers the Safe Drinking Water Act locally. Search EPA SDWIS for the current state contact, or use the state's public health or environment department portal.

Find LA regulator via EPA SDWIS

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
2024 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 77 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 7000
2023 Lead and Copper Rule MR 16 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 5000
2020 Public Notice Other 47 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 7500
2020 Groundwater Rule TT 33 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 0700
2017 Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 4 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 8000
2017 Chlorine MR 4 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 0999
2015 TTHM MR 20 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 2950
2015 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 20 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 2456
2015 Coliform (TCR) MR 4 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 3100
2003 Coliform (TCR) MCL 9 SDWIS / LA1119004 / 3100

How Cotton Valley Water System Compares

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

Metric Cotton Valley Water System Louisiana avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 252 93.2 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 42 50.4 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 82.3% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 1,380 4,308 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 1,234 regulated public water systems in Louisiana.

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 Cotton Valley Water System water safe to drink? ▼
Cotton Valley Water System (PWS ID: LA1119004) has 252 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 1,380 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Cotton Valley Water System serve? ▼
Cotton Valley Water System serves 1,380 people in Cotton Valley, Louisiana. It is a Local-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 460 service connections.
What type of violations does Cotton Valley Water System have? ▼
Cotton Valley Water System has 252 total violations: 42 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 68 monitoring/reporting violations, and 33 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Cotton Valley Water System water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Cotton Valley Water System under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Cotton Valley Water System use? ▼
Cotton Valley Water System 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.