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Spring Canyon WA

What EPA’s and California’s records show in this utility’s water: nitrate, arsenic and other regulated chemicals; lead and copper; and violations since 2016, with the certification that handles each result.

Serves
90 people
Connections
33
Water source
Groundwater
Based in
Salinas, CA
County
Monterey
Owner
Private
Hardness
Varies by source
The ZIP code it serves

93907

The short answer

1 result is above EPA’s legal limit, 1 more is above the limit’s level with no violation recorded, and 2 more are above the health goal. The worst: Nitrate, above the legal limit. 7 health-based violations since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 2013 to 2026.

Nitrate, arsenic, uranium, fluoride and chromium (total): California’s own results, samples taken from March 11, 2020 to June 2, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM): EPA’s compliance monitoring file, samples taken from March 19, 2014 to March 19, 2014. Newer results are in the utility’s annual water quality report.

Above the legal limit1

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Above the legal limit

14ppm

Highest sample; found in 59 of 60

2026 average: 12.3 ppm

From 2021 to 2026, at least 25 samples were above EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm, the highest 14 ppm in 2025. The next sample at the same point, within 30 days, kept the average above the limit for 13; one came back under and 11 have no follow-up sample on file within 30 days. In 2026, the latest year on file, its six samples averaged 12.3 ppm, above the limit. EPA recorded violations for nitrate at this utility in 2021, 2023 and 2024. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 9.3 ppm, in 2017.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”

Above the limit’s level, no violation recorded1

Arsenic

Comes from the source

Above the limit’s level, no violation

72ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026, one sample: 4.0 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 72 ppb, in 2024, about 7.2 times EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its one sample was 4.0 ppb. EPA judges this limit on running averages at each sampling point, and recorded no violation for arsenic at this utility since 2020. Results like these with no violation often include water sampled before treatment or blending; the utility’s annual report says what reaches the tap. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 45 ppb, in 2012.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”

Above the health goal2

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the health goal

3.0ppb

90th percentile, 2024 to 2026

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 3.0 ppb, below EPA’s action level of 15 ppb. The action level drops to 10 ppb on Nov. 1, 2027. EPA’s health goal for lead is zero.

What handles it

Uranium

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

1.8ppb

Highest yearly average, 2024

Averaged by year, the highest was 1.8 ppb, in 2024: below EPA’s legal limit of 30 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. That is the only year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 8.7 ppb, in 2012.

What handles it

Below EPA’s limits1

Fluoride

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

0.41ppm

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026: not found

Averaged by year, the highest was 0.41 ppm, in 2020, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 0.17 ppm, in 2014.

What handles it

2 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
  • Chromium (total)
  • Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

What handles it

A certification covers specific claims, not a whole standard. Look for these claims on the certifier’s listing, not the box. Wording varies a little: NSF writes “Lead Reduction,” WQA just “Lead.”

  • NSF/ANSI 53

    Claims: Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge), Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction

    For: Nitrate, Arsenic, Lead

    Other certifiers’ wording: Arsenic (III) (50 ppb influent level)

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction, Uranium

    For: Nitrate, Arsenic, Lead, Uranium

    Other certifiers’ wording: Nitrate; Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=300 ppb Reduction; Arsenic (V) (300 ppb influent level)

At the tap, or for the whole house?

Lead and copper usually come from pipes and fixtures inside or near your home. A whole-house system sits where water enters, so it cannot catch what your own plumbing adds after it. For those, the filter that counts is the one at the tap. How whole-house systems compare.

Filters with those claims on a certifier’s listing

Disclosure: TapBuff earns a commission if you buy through some links on this page. It does not change which standard or filter we name. As an Amazon Associate, TapBuff earns from qualifying purchases. How TapBuff makes money

Compare five-year costs

The best reverse osmosis systems, ranked

The best water filters for lead, ranked

Hardness

Hard to very hard depending on the source, 156 to 240 mg/L (9.1 to 14 grains per gallon), across 2 sampling points, 2020 to 2026.

Hardness is calcium and magnesium. EPA sets no limit for it: it shows up as scale on fixtures and in water heaters, and as soap that won’t lather. USGS calls water above 60 mg/L moderately hard, above 120 hard and above 180 very hard.

Softeners compared, salt includedSoftener or salt-free conditioner?California water hardness, utility by utility

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
Lead and Copper Rule RevisionsThe required inventory of lead service lines was not completed or submitted on time.EPA: LSL InventoryOct. 17, 2024—Unaddressed
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleOct. 1, 2024 to Dec. 31, 202411 MG/LArchived
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleApril 1, 2024 to June 30, 202412 MG/LArchived
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleJan. 1, 2024 to March 31, 202413 MG/LArchived
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleOct. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 202311 MG/LArchived
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleJuly 1, 2023 to Sept. 30, 202311 MG/LArchived
NitrateA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleJuly 1, 2021 to Sept. 30, 202111.6 MG/LArchived
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 1 monitoring or reporting violation not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Nitrate, arsenic, uranium, fluoride and chromium (total) results here are California’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) comes from EPA’s file alone, which ends in 2019. Spring Canyon WA’s own annual report, which it must send you every year, has newer results for those and the contaminants this page does not show.

  • Your own plumbing. Lead results are the 90th percentile across homes the utility samples. Your home’s service line, solder and fixtures decide yours. A certified lab test is the only way to know.

  • What it means for your health. This page reports what the records show and EPA’s limits and goals; it is not medical advice. If you are worried about a health effect, talk to a doctor or your local health department.

  • Anything after the latest data. SDWIS data is from 2026 Q3; UCMR 5 didn’t sample this utility; California’s results run from March 11, 2020 to June 2, 2026; EPA’s compliance samples are from March 19, 2014 to March 19, 2014.

Testing your own tap

Spring Canyon WA’s results are for the water it sends out. What your own service line, solder and fixtures add shows up only in a test of your tap, by a lab California certifies.

The 3 labs California certifies closest to the area Spring Canyon WA serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Monterey County Consolidated Environmental Laboratory

    Salinas, CA · about 5 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics

    (831) 755-4516

  • Monterey Bay Analytical Services, Inc.

    Monterey, CA · about 15 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, radioactivity

    (831) 375-6227

  • CM Analytical, Inc.

    Gilroy, CA · about 17 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (408) 848-3619

All 145 certified labs for California

Sources

PWSID CA2700838. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Monterey County

All California utilities

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