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Slater Muni Water Dept

What EPA’s and Iowa’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
1,548 people
Connections
641
Water source
Groundwater bought from another system
Based in
Slater, IA
County
Story
Owner
Local government
The 2 ZIP codes it serves

50243, 50244

The short answer

2 results are above the health goal. The worst: Lead, above the health goal. 1 health-based violation since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 2018 to 2025.

Copper: EPA’s file records a utility’s copper only when it exceeds the action level. The last here was 1.4 ppm, for the period ending June 30, 2019. None since is on file, so it is not counted as a current finding.

Arsenic, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate and chromium (total): Iowa’s own results, samples taken from Jan. 14, 2020 to July 17, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

Above the health goal2

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the health goal

7.0ppb

90th percentile, 2023 to 2025

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 7.0 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

Arsenic

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

1.0ppb

Highest yearly average, 2022

Averaged by year, the highest was 1.0 ppb, in 2022: below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. That is the only year on file.

What handles it

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

Below EPA’s limits4

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

50.3ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 23.8 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 50.3 ppb, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. Its highest single sample was 98.5 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its six samples averaged 23.8 ppb. EPA recorded no violation for total trihalomethanes (TTHM) at this utility since 2020. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 18.7 ppb, in 2017.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”

Haloacetic acids (HAA5)

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

23.9ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 23.9 ppb, in 2026, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. Its highest single sample was 30.3 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 18 ppb, in 2013.

What handles it

No certification claim covers this compound yet.

Fluoride

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

0.64ppm

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026, one sample: 0.6 ppm

Averaged by year, the highest was 0.64 ppm, in 2024, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. Its highest single sample was 0.8 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, its one sample was 0.6 ppm.

What handles it

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

1.4ppm

Highest sample; found in 9 of 9

2026, one sample: 1.0 ppm

The highest sample, in 2020, was 1.4 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, its one sample was 1.0 ppm.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”
One compound tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
  • Chromium (total)

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: Lead Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction

    For: Lead, Arsenic

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

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Lead Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction

    For: Lead, Arsenic

    Other certifiers’ wording: 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 water filters for lead, ranked

The best reverse osmosis systems, ranked

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
NitriteA sample was above the legal limit, for a contaminant judged one sample at a time.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single SampleOct. 1, 2022 to Dec. 31, 20221.4 MG/LResolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 5 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Arsenic, total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate and chromium (total) results here are Iowa’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Slater Muni Water Dept’s own annual report, which it must send you every year, has 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; Iowa’s results run from Jan. 14, 2020 to July 17, 2026.

Testing your own tap

Slater Muni Water Dept’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 Iowa certifies.

The 3 labs Iowa certifies closest to the area Slater Muni Water Dept serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • State Hygienic Laboratory - Ankeny

    Ankeny, IA · about 10 miles

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

    (515) 725-1600

  • AgSource

    Ellsworth, IA · about 33 miles

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

    (515) 297-8103

  • Microbac Laboratories - Newton

    Newton, IA · about 35 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts

    (641) 792-8451

State Hygienic Laboratory at the University of Iowa: Through the Grants-to-Counties program, private well owners in participating counties can have their water tested for total coliform bacteria and nitrate. Start with the county sanitarian at your county health department. No cost in a participating county. The Grants-to-Counties Program, State Hygienic Lab at the University of Iowa.

All 36 certified labs for Iowa

Sources

PWSID IA8580057. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Towns it serves

Also in Story County

All Iowa utilities

What to do next