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Community Water System · PWS TN0000055

Harbor Utility District

Big Sandy, Tennessee 38221 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 750 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

750
People served
29
EPA violations
0
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 29 drinking-water violations at Harbor Utility District - below the Tennessee per-system average.

29
Total EPA violations on record
0%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
750
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Harbor Utility District

Harbor Utility District is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 750 residents in Big Sandy, Tennessee (Benton County) through 319 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 29 total violations for this system , of which 0 (0%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 24 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2003.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Coliform (TCR), recorded in 10 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 Tennessee, EPA tracks 762 public water systems serving 7,934,203 people, with 43,318 cumulative violations and 9,414 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 56.8 violations. Statewide, 93 of 277 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (33.6%).

Harbor Utility District's 29 violations sit below the Tennessee 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
750
Total Violations
29
Health-Based Violations
0
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
319
County
Benton
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
0
Monitoring Violations
24
Treatment Tech Violations
0

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Coliform (TCR) MR 10 2003
Lead and Copper Rule MR 5 1994
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 3 1999
Arsenic MR 1 1985
Mercury MR 1 1985
Selenium MR 1 1985
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 1 1984
Chromium MR 1 1985
Cadmium MR 1 1985
Fluoride MR 1 1985
Nitrate MR 1 1985
Barium MR 1 1985

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 Harbor Utility 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 TN0000055 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Tennessee Drinking Water Authority

Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation, Drinking Water is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Harbor Utility District under EPA-delegated authority.

Open TN regulator portal

Source: Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation, 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
2003 Coliform (TCR) MR 10 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 3100
1999 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 3 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 7000
1994 Lead and Copper Rule MR 5 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 5000
1985 Arsenic MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1005
1985 Mercury MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1035
1985 Selenium MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1045
1985 Chromium MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1020
1985 Cadmium MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1015
1985 Fluoride MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1025
1985 Nitrate MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1040
1985 Barium MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 1010
1984 Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MR 1 SDWIS / TN0000055 / 4000

How Harbor Utility District Compares

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

Metric Harbor Utility District Tennessee avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 29 56.8 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 0 12.4 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 33.6% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 750 10,412 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 762 regulated public water systems in Tennessee.

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 Harbor Utility District water safe to drink? ▼
Harbor Utility District (PWS ID: TN0000055) has 29 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 750 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Harbor Utility District serve? ▼
Harbor Utility District serves 750 people in Big Sandy, Tennessee. It is a Local-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 319 service connections.
What type of violations does Harbor Utility District have? ▼
Harbor Utility District has 29 total violations: 0 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 24 monitoring/reporting violations, and 0 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Harbor Utility District water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Harbor Utility District under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Harbor Utility District use? ▼
Harbor Utility 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.