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Community Water System · PWS PA2590029

Watrous Water Association

Gaines, Pennsylvania 16921 - drinking water served from surface water sources to 75 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

75
People served
881
EPA violations
5
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 881 drinking-water violations at Watrous Water Association, 1% of them health-based - above the Pennsylvania per-system average.

881
Total EPA violations on record
1%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
75
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Watrous Water Association

Watrous Water Association is a private-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 75 residents in Gaines, Pennsylvania (Tioga County) through 28 service connections. Its water is drawn from surface water sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 881 total violations for this system , of which 5 (1%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 791 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 221 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 Pennsylvania, EPA tracks 7,701 public water systems serving 12,630,061 people, with 1,159,868 cumulative violations and 68,517 health-based violations on record. About 97% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 150.6 violations. Statewide, 224 of 389 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (57.6%).

Watrous Water Association's 881 violations sit above the Pennsylvania 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
75
Total Violations
881
Health-Based Violations
5
Water Source
Surface Water

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Private
Connections
28
County
Tioga
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
5
Monitoring Violations
791
Treatment Tech Violations
0

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Surface Water Treatment Rule MR 221 2025
Chlorine MR 135 2025
Coliform (TCR) MR 53 2015
Public Notice Other 52 2012
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 27 2011
Combined Uranium MR 26 2011
Radium-226 MR 26 2011
Radium-228 MR 26 2011
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 23 2024
Nitrate MR 22 1998
2,3,7,8-TCDD MR 12 2015
Endrin MR 8 2014
Endothall MR 8 2015
2,4,5-TP MR 8 2014
Total Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) MR 8 2015
BHC-GAMMA MR 8 2014
2,4-D MR 8 2014
Methoxychlor MR 8 2014
Toxaphene MR 8 2014
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 8 2023
TTHM MR 8 2017
Dalapon MR 7 2014
OXAMYL MR 7 2014
Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate MR 7 2014
Picloram MR 7 2014
Dinoseb MR 7 2014
Hexachlorocyclopentadiene MR 7 2014
Carbofuran MR 7 2014
Atrazine MR 7 2014
LASSO MR 7 2014

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 Watrous Water Association.

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 PA2590029 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Pennsylvania Drinking Water Authority

Pennsylvania DEP, Bureau of Safe Drinking Water is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Watrous Water Association under EPA-delegated authority.

Open PA regulator portal

Source: Pennsylvania DEP, Bureau of Safe Drinking 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 Surface Water Treatment Rule MR 221 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 0200
2025 Chlorine MR 135 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 0999
2024 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 23 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 7000
2024 Fluoride MR 4 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 1025
2023 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2456
2017 TTHM MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2950
2015 Coliform (TCR) MR 53 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 3100
2015 2,3,7,8-TCDD MR 12 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2063
2015 Endothall MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2033
2015 Total Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2383
2014 Endrin MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2005
2014 2,4,5-TP MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2110
2014 BHC-GAMMA MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2010
2014 2,4-D MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2105
2014 Methoxychlor MR 8 SDWIS / PA2590029 / 2015

How Watrous Water Association Compares

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

Metric Watrous Water Association Pennsylvania avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 881 150.6 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 5 8.9 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 57.6% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 75 1,640 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 7,701 regulated public water systems in Pennsylvania.

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 Watrous Water Association water safe to drink? ▼
Watrous Water Association (PWS ID: PA2590029) has 881 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 75 people using Surface Water sources.
How many people does Watrous Water Association serve? ▼
Watrous Water Association serves 75 people in Gaines, Pennsylvania. It is a Private-owned system using Surface Water water sources with 28 service connections.
What type of violations does Watrous Water Association have? ▼
Watrous Water Association has 881 total violations: 5 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 791 monitoring/reporting violations, and 0 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Watrous Water Association water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Watrous Water Association under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Watrous Water Association use? ▼
Watrous Water Association 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.