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Community Water System · PWS TN0008278

Watauga River Reg Water Auth

Elizabethton, Tennessee 37644 - drinking water served from surface water sources to 353 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

353
People served
2
EPA violations
0
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 2 drinking-water violations at Watauga River Reg Water Auth - below the Tennessee per-system average.

2
Total EPA violations on record
0%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
353
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Watauga River Reg Water Auth

Watauga River Reg Water Auth is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 353 residents in Elizabethton, Tennessee (Carter County) through 155 service connections. Its water is drawn from surface water sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 2 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. The most recent violation on record dates to 2019.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Consumer Confidence Rule, recorded in 2 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 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%).

Watauga River Reg Water Auth's 2 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
353
Total Violations
2
Health-Based Violations
0
Water Source
Surface Water

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
155
County
Carter
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
0
Monitoring Violations
0
Treatment Tech Violations
0

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 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 Watauga River Reg Water Auth.

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 TN0008278 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 Watauga River Reg Water Auth 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
2019 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 2 SDWIS / TN0008278 / 7000

How Watauga River Reg Water Auth Compares

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

Metric Watauga River Reg Water Auth Tennessee avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 2 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 353 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 Watauga River Reg Water Auth water safe to drink? ▼
Watauga River Reg Water Auth (PWS ID: TN0008278) has 2 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 353 people using Surface Water sources.
How many people does Watauga River Reg Water Auth serve? ▼
Watauga River Reg Water Auth serves 353 people in Elizabethton, Tennessee. It is a Local-owned system using Surface Water water sources with 155 service connections.
What type of violations does Watauga River Reg Water Auth have? ▼
Watauga River Reg Water Auth has 2 total violations: 0 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 0 monitoring/reporting violations, and 0 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Watauga River Reg Water Auth water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Watauga River Reg Water Auth under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Watauga River Reg Water Auth use? ▼
Watauga River Reg Water Auth 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.