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Community Water System · PWS NY0200320

Houghton Water District

Caneadea, New York 14717 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 2,000 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

2,000
People served
85
EPA violations
69
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 85 drinking-water violations at Houghton Water District, 81% of them health-based - above the New York per-system average.

85
Total EPA violations on record
81%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
2,000
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Houghton Water District

Houghton Water District is a public/private-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 2,000 residents in Caneadea, New York (Allegany County) through 250 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 85 total violations for this system , of which 69 (81%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 10 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2019.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Arsenic, recorded in 69 violations (MCL, 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 New York, EPA tracks 8,098 public water systems serving 19,294,951 people, with 552,003 cumulative violations and 26,817 health-based violations on record. About 94% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 68.2 violations. Statewide, 129 of 332 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (38.9%).

Houghton Water District's 85 violations sit above the New York 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
2,000
Total Violations
85
Health-Based Violations
69
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Public/Private
Connections
250
County
Allegany
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
69
Monitoring Violations
10
Treatment Tech Violations
0

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Arsenic MCL 69 2011
TTHM MR 2 2012
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 2 2012
Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate MR 2 2019
Nitrate MR 2 2007
Benzo(a)pyrene MR 2 2019

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 Houghton Water District.

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 NY0200320 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

New York Drinking Water Authority

New York State Department of Health, Public Water Systems is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Houghton Water District under EPA-delegated authority.

Open NY regulator portal

Source: New York State Department of Health, Public Water Systems

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
2019 Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate MR 2 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 2035
2019 Benzo(a)pyrene MR 2 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 2306
2012 TTHM MR 2 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 2950
2012 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 2 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 2456
2011 Arsenic MCL 69 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 1005
2007 Nitrate MR 2 SDWIS / NY0200320 / 1040

How Houghton Water District Compares

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

Metric Houghton Water District New York avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 85 68.2 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 69 3.3 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 38.9% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 2,000 2,383 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 8,098 regulated public water systems in New York.

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 Houghton Water District water safe to drink? ▼
Houghton Water District (PWS ID: NY0200320) has 85 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 2,000 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Houghton Water District serve? ▼
Houghton Water District serves 2,000 people in Caneadea, New York. It is a Public/Private-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 250 service connections.
What type of violations does Houghton Water District have? ▼
Houghton Water District has 85 total violations: 69 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 10 monitoring/reporting violations, and 0 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Houghton Water District water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Houghton Water District under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Houghton Water District use? ▼
Houghton Water District 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.