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Community Water System · PWS TX1320006

Rio Brazos Water System

Synder, Texas 79549-9362 - drinking water served from groundwater sources to 225 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

225
People served
977
EPA violations
621
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 977 drinking-water violations at Rio Brazos Water System, 64% of them health-based - above the Texas per-system average.

977
Total EPA violations on record
64%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
225
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Rio Brazos Water System

Rio Brazos Water System is a private-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 225 residents in Synder, Texas (Kent County) through 143 service connections. Its water is drawn from groundwater sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 977 total violations for this system , of which 621 (64%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 168 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 Combined Radium (-226 and -228), recorded in 301 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 Texas, EPA tracks 7,351 public water systems serving 33,253,313 people, with 746,210 cumulative violations and 162,945 health-based violations on record. About 90% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 101.5 violations. Statewide, 610 of 1,147 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (53.2%).

Rio Brazos Water System's 977 violations sit above the Texas 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
225
Total Violations
977
Health-Based Violations
621
Water Source
Groundwater

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Private
Connections
143
County
Kent
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
618
Monitoring Violations
168
Treatment Tech Violations
3

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Combined Radium (-226 and -228) MCL 301 2022
Combined Uranium MCL 245 2021
Public Notice Other 171 2025
Chlorine MR 92 2021
Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MCL 72 2019
Lead and Copper Rule MR 49 2023
Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 19 2022
Consumer Confidence Rule Other 10 2022
E. COLI MR 8 2017
LEAD AND COPPER RULE REVISIONS RPT 3 2024
LEAD AND COPPER RULE REVISIONS TT 3 2024

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 Rio Brazos Water System.

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 TX1320006 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Texas Drinking Water Authority

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) - Drinking Water Watch is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Rio Brazos Water System under EPA-delegated authority.

Open TX regulator portal

Source: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) - Drinking Water Watch

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 Public Notice Other 171 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 7500
2024 LEAD AND COPPER RULE REVISIONS RPT 3 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 5200
2024 LEAD AND COPPER RULE REVISIONS TT 3 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 5200
2023 Lead and Copper Rule MR 49 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 5000
2022 Combined Radium (-226 and -228) MCL 301 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 4010
2022 Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 19 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 8000
2022 Consumer Confidence Rule Other 10 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 7000
2021 Combined Uranium MCL 245 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 4006
2021 Chlorine MR 92 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 0999
2019 Gross Alpha, Excl. Radon and U MCL 72 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 4000
2017 E. COLI MR 8 SDWIS / TX1320006 / 3014

How Rio Brazos Water System Compares

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

Metric Rio Brazos Water System Texas avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 977 101.5 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 621 22.2 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 53.2% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 225 4,524 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 7,351 regulated public water systems in Texas.

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 Rio Brazos Water System water safe to drink? ▼
Rio Brazos Water System (PWS ID: TX1320006) has 977 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 225 people using Groundwater sources.
How many people does Rio Brazos Water System serve? ▼
Rio Brazos Water System serves 225 people in Synder, Texas. It is a Private-owned system using Groundwater water sources with 143 service connections.
What type of violations does Rio Brazos Water System have? ▼
Rio Brazos Water System has 977 total violations: 621 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 168 monitoring/reporting violations, and 3 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Rio Brazos Water System water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Rio Brazos Water System under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Rio Brazos Water System use? ▼
Rio Brazos Water System 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.