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Is South Lake Tahoe, CA tap water safe?

4 utilities serve South Lake Tahoe, 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

1 of the 4 utilities serving South Lake Tahoe has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and California’s records: Tahoe Keys Water Company.

South Tahoe PUD - Main, which serves the most people here, has 2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029, 2 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: PFOA at 6.1 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.

The water from South Tahoe PUD - Main is soft to moderately hard depending on the source, 11 to 85 mg/L (0.7 to 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 South Lake Tahoe’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 South Tahoe PUD - Main’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 South Lake Tahoe

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 South Lake Tahoe, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • SGS Silver State Analytical Lab - Reno

    Reno, NV · about 46 miles

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

    (775) 857-2400

  • 49er Water Laboratory

    Jackson, CA · about 54 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, minerals and other inorganics

    (530) 277-2770

  • Precision Enviro-Tech

    Twain Harte, CA · about 59 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (209) 477-8105

All 145 certified labs for California

ZIP codes in South Lake Tahoe

Which ZIP codes are in South Lake Tahoe: 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 South Lake Tahoe

Other towns in El Dorado County with a page of their own.

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