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Community Water System · PWS WA5313500

Cle Elum Water Department

Cle Elum, Washington 98922 - drinking water served from surface water sources to 2,213 people, tracked in EPA SDWIS and UCMR5.

2,213
People served
160
EPA violations
82
Health-based
Untested
UCMR5 result

The verdict

EPA records 160 drinking-water violations at Cle Elum Water Department, 51% of them health-based - above the Washington per-system average.

160
Total EPA violations on record
51%
Health-based (MCL / treatment failure)
2,213
People served by this system
N/A
PFAS compounds detected (UCMR5)

Water Quality Snapshot: Cle Elum Water Department

Cle Elum Water Department is a local-owned community water system that delivers drinking water to 2,213 residents in Cle Elum, Washington (Kittitas County) through 1,488 service connections. Its water is drawn from surface water sources. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System records 160 total violations for this system , of which 82 (51%) are health-based, meaning a contaminant exceeded an EPA Maximum Contaminant Level or a required treatment technique failed. A further 73 monitoring and reporting violations are on file. The most recent violation on record dates to 2023.

The most frequently cited contaminant at this system is Surface Water Treatment Rule, recorded in 82 violations (TT, 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 Washington, EPA tracks 4,557 public water systems serving 9,736,844 people, with 314,648 cumulative violations and 20,590 health-based violations on record. About 92% of systems in the state carry at least one violation, and state-wide the average per system is 69 violations. Statewide, 98 of 247 UCMR5-tested systems have reported PFAS detections (39.7%).

Cle Elum Water Department's 160 violations sit above the Washington 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
2,213
Total Violations
160
Health-Based Violations
82
Water Source
Surface Water

System Details

System Type
Community
Owner Type
Local
Connections
1,488
County
Kittitas
School/Daycare
No
MCL Violations
0
Monitoring Violations
73
Treatment Tech Violations
82

Violation History

Contaminant violations recorded by EPA.

Contaminant Category Count Latest
Surface Water Treatment Rule TT 82 2012
Lead and Copper Rule MR 13 2022
Surface Water Treatment Rule MR 4 1999
TTHM MR 3 2014
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 3 2014
DICHLOROMETHANE MR 2 2007
o-Dichlorobenzene MR 2 2007
1,1-Dichloroethylene MR 2 2007
trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene MR 2 2007
1,2-Dichloroethane MR 2 2007
1,2-Dichloropropane MR 2 2007
1,1,2-Trichloroethane MR 2 2007
Tetrachloroethylene MR 2 2007
Vinyl chloride MR 2 2007
Carbon tetrachloride MR 2 2007
Styrene MR 2 2007
cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene MR 2 2007
CHLOROBENZENE MR 2 2007
1,1,1-Trichloroethane MR 2 2007
Ethylbenzene MR 2 2007
1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene MR 2 2007
p-Dichlorobenzene MR 2 2007
Toluene MR 2 2007
Trichloroethylene MR 2 2007
Benzene MR 2 2007
Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 1 2023
Chromium MR 1 1979
Arsenic MR 1 1979
Nitrate MR 1 1979
Cadmium MR 1 1979

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 Cle Elum Water Department.

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 WA5313500 on SDWIS

Source: EPA SDWIS Federal Reports Search

State Regulator

Washington Drinking Water Authority

Washington State Department of Health, Office of Drinking Water is the primacy agency that licenses and inspects Cle Elum Water Department under EPA-delegated authority.

Open WA regulator portal

Source: Washington State Department of Health, Office of 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
2023 Revised Total Coliform Rule MON 1 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 8000
2022 Lead and Copper Rule MR 13 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 5000
2014 TTHM MR 3 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2950
2014 Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) MR 3 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2456
2012 Surface Water Treatment Rule TT 82 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 0200
2007 DICHLOROMETHANE MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2964
2007 o-Dichlorobenzene MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2968
2007 1,1-Dichloroethylene MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2977
2007 trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2979
2007 1,2-Dichloroethane MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2980
2007 1,2-Dichloropropane MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2983
2007 1,1,2-Trichloroethane MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2985
2007 Tetrachloroethylene MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2987
2007 Vinyl chloride MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2976
2007 Carbon tetrachloride MR 2 SDWIS / WA5313500 / 2982

How Cle Elum Water Department Compares

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

Metric Cle Elum Water Department Washington avg Federal benchmark
Total violations 160 69 SDWA compliance, any non-zero count is a recorded breach
Health-based violations 82 4.5 Indicates a contaminant exceeded a federal MCL
PFAS detection None 39.7% EPA final rule (2024): PFOA/PFOS MCL = 4.0 ppt
Population served 2,213 2,137 Sizing context for compliance burden

Sources: EPA SDWIS and EPA National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (40 CFR Part 141). State averages computed across 4,557 regulated public water systems in Washington.

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 Cle Elum Water Department water safe to drink? ▼
Cle Elum Water Department (PWS ID: WA5313500) has 160 recorded violations in the EPA SDWIS database. No PFAS contamination was detected in UCMR5 testing. This system serves 2,213 people using Surface Water sources.
How many people does Cle Elum Water Department serve? ▼
Cle Elum Water Department serves 2,213 people in Cle Elum, Washington. It is a Local-owned system using Surface Water water sources with 1,488 service connections.
What type of violations does Cle Elum Water Department have? ▼
Cle Elum Water Department has 160 total violations: 82 health-based violations (MCL exceedances or treatment failures), 73 monitoring/reporting violations, and 82 treatment technique violations. Health-based violations indicate contaminant levels exceeded EPA safe limits.
Has PFAS been detected in Cle Elum Water Department water? ▼
No PFAS testing data is available for Cle Elum Water Department under the EPA's UCMR5 monitoring program.
What water source does Cle Elum Water Department use? ▼
Cle Elum Water Department 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.