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Community Water System · PWS NC0157143

Cullasaja Club

Highlands, North Carolina 28741 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 800 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

800
People served
172
EPA violations
19
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 172 drinking-water violations at Cullasaja Club, 11% of them health-based - above the North Carolina per-system average.

172
Total EPA violations on record
11%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
800
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Cullasaja Club

Cullasaja Club is a private-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 800 residents in Highlands, North Carolina (Macon County) through 317 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 172 total violations for this system , of which 19 (11%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 135 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 Lead and Copper Rule, recorded in 23 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 North Carolina, EPA tracks 5,020 public water systems serving 9,877,724 people, with 524,053 cumulative violations and 38,492 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 104.4 violations. Statewide, 174 of 287 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (60.6%).

Cullasaja Club's 172 violations sit above the North Carolina 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
800
Total Violations
172
Health-Based Violations
19
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Private
Connections
317
County
Macon
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
0
Monitoring Violations
135
Treatment Tech Violations
19

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Lead and Copper Rule MR 23 2014
Lead and Copper Rule TT 19 2014
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 11 2021
TTHM MR 9 2016
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 9 2016
Coliform (TCR) MR 6 2002
Heptachlor MR 5 2020
Endrin MR 5 2020
Benzo(a)pyrene MR 5 2020
Methoxychlor MR 5 2020
Heptachlor epoxide MR 5 2020
HEXACHLOROBENZENE MR 5 2020
Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate MR 5 2020
Simazine MR 5 2020
Atrazine MR 5 2020
Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate MR 5 2020
BHC-GAMMA MR 5 2020
LASSO MR 5 2020
Picloram MR 5 2013
Hexachlorocyclopentadiene MR 5 2020
Public Notice Other 4 2004
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 3 2005
Combined Uranium MR 3 2005
Radium-226 MR 3 2005
Radium-228 MR 3 2005
Combined Radium (-226 and -228) MR 3 2005
Nitrite MR 3 1999

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 Cullasaja Club.

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 NC0157143 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

North Carolina Drinking Water Authority

North Carolina DEQ, Public Water Supply Section is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Cullasaja Club under EPA-delegated authority.

Open NC regulator portal

Source: North Carolina DEQ, Public Water Supply Section

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 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 11 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 7000
2020 Heptachlor MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2065
2020 Endrin MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2005
2020 Benzo(a)pyrene MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2306
2020 Methoxychlor MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2015
2020 Heptachlor epoxide MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2067
2020 HEXACHLOROBENZENE MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2274
2020 Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2035
2020 Simazine MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2037
2020 Atrazine MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2050
2020 Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2039
2020 BHC-GAMMA MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2010
2020 LASSO MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2051
2020 Hexachlorocyclopentadiene MR 5 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2042
2016 TTHM MR 9 SDWIS / NC0157143 / 2950

How Cullasaja Club Compares

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

Metric Cullasaja Club North Carolina avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 172 104.4 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 19 7.7 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 60.6% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 800 1,968 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 5,020 regulated public water systems in North Carolina.

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 Cullasaja Club water safe to drink? ▼
Cullasaja Club (PWS ID: NC0157143) has 172 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 800 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Cullasaja Club serve? ▼
Cullasaja Club serves 800 people in Highlands, North Carolina. It is a Private-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 317 service connections.
What type of violations does Cullasaja Club have? ▼
Cullasaja Club has 172 total violations: 19 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 135 monitoring/reporting violations, and 19 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Cullasaja Club water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Cullasaja Club under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Cullasaja Club use? ▼
Cullasaja Club 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.