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Is Pajaro, CA tap water safe?

2 utilities serve Pajaro, by EPA’s records. Here is what EPA’s and California’s records show for each, against the legal limits and the stricter health goals.

Matched to your utility using EPA records.

The short answer

Neither of the 2 utilities serving Pajaro has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and California’s records.

City of Watsonville, which serves the most people here, has 2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029, 3 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: PFOA at 6.5 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.

The water from City of Watsonville is very hard, typically 230 mg/L (13.5 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 Pajaro’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.

What handles it

Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in City of Watsonville’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.

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Every claim, and more filters, in the full report

Water testing near Pajaro

A utility tests the water it sends out. A test of your own tap shows what your pipes add, and on a private well it is the only test there is. It takes a lab California certifies.

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

  • CM Analytical, Inc.

    Gilroy, CA · about 12 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (408) 848-3619

  • Bracewell Engineering, Inc.

    Morgan Hill, CA · about 14 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, minerals and other inorganics

    (669) 258-5821

  • Santa Cruz County - Health Services Agency - Environmental Health

    Santa Cruz, CA · about 15 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (831) 454-4624

All 145 certified labs for California

ZIP codes in Pajaro

Which ZIP codes are in Pajaro: 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 Pajaro

Other towns in Monterey County with a page of their own.

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