Is Oroville, CA tap water safe?
The short answer
3 of the 6 utilities serving Oroville have a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and California’s records: Thermalito Water & Sewer Dist, Foothills Manufactured Home Communuty and Lincoln Grove Estates.
South Feather W&P - Miners Ranch, which serves the most people here, has nothing above a health goal in EPA’s and California’s records. That data covers what its report lists, not everything.
The water from South Feather W&P - Miners Ranch is soft, 27 mg/L (1.6 grains per gallon). How California’s water compares.
A town can be served by more than one utility, and some homes are on private wells. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours, and your ZIP code narrows it down. They are listed by how many people each serves in Oroville’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
South Feather W&P - Miners Ranch
California · serves 22,638 people · about 590 in Oroville
Nothing in its records is above a health goal. Hardness: soft, 27 mg/L (1.6 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Thermalito Water & Sewer Dist
California · serves 12,209 people · about 340 in Oroville
1 result above the legal limit, 1 result above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029, 1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Haloacetic acids (HAA5) at 47.5 ppb, above the legal limit. Hardness: soft to moderately hard depending on the source, 36 to 117 mg/L (2.1 to 6.8 grains per gallon).
1 health-based violation since 2016
- Open report
Cal - Water Service Co. - Oroville
California · serves 11,047 people · about 300 in Oroville
2 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 81.3 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. Hardness: soft to hard depending on the source, 37 to 145 mg/L (2.2 to 8.5 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Foothills Manufactured Home Communuty
California · serves 180 people · under 100 in Oroville
1 result above the limit’s level with no violation recorded and 1 result above the health goal. The worst: Arsenic at 23.4 ppb, above the limit’s level, no violation. Hardness: soft to moderately hard depending on the source, 22 to 62 mg/L (1.3 to 3.6 grains per gallon).
1 health-based violation since 2016
- Open report
Lincoln Grove Estates
California · serves 327 people · under 100 in Oroville
Nothing in its records is above a health goal. Hardness: hard, 177 mg/L (10.4 grains per gallon).
1 health-based violation since 2016
- Open report
Falling Rock Rv Park
California · serves 25 people · based in Oroville
Nothing in its records is above a health goal. Hardness: moderately hard, 88 mg/L (5.1 grains per gallon).
No health-based violations since 2016
Water testing near Oroville
The 3 labs California certifies closest to Oroville, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Fruit Growers Laboratory, Inc.
Chico, CA · about 24 miles
Certified for bacteria
Cranmer Engineering, Inc.
Grass Valley, CA · about 32 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics
Eurofins Sacramento Service Center
West Sacramento, CA · about 65 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, minerals and other inorganics
Which ZIP codes are in Oroville: Census 2020 relationship files. Which utilities serve them, and how many people: EPA SDWIS and EPA’s service area map. Each utility’s results: EPA UCMR 5, EPA SDWIS, and EPA’s and the state’s compliance monitoring, as its report lists them. How they are measured: methodology. Certified labs: California State Water Resources Control Board, ELAP accredited laboratories and their fields of accreditation; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near Oroville
Other towns in Butte County with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read South Feather W&P - Miners Ranch’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- Decide if you want a filter at allA filter for taste or chlorine is a preference, not a need. The standards say what each kind can do.NSF/ANSI standards, decoded
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water