Skip to content
TapBuff
ZIP

City of Herington

What EPA’s and Kansas’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
2,332 people
Connections
1,172
Water source
Surface water
Based in
Herington, KS
County
Dickinson
Owner
Local government
Hardness
Very hard
The ZIP code it serves

67449

The short answer

1 result is above EPA’s legal limit, and 2 more are above the health goal. The worst: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), above the legal limit. 8 health-based violations since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 2007 to 2023.

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), arsenic, haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate and chromium (total): Kansas’s own results, samples taken from Jan. 7, 2020 to Aug. 26, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

Above the legal limit1

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the legal limit

78.9ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 50.8 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 78.9 ppb, in 2024, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. Its highest single sample was 103 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 50.8 ppb. EPA judges this limit at each sampling point, and recorded a violation for total trihalomethanes (TTHM) at this utility in 2024. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 96.4 ppb, in 2015, and EPA recorded violations in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019.

What handles it

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

Above the health goal2

Arsenic

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

2.9ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 2.9 ppb, in 2026: below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 3.2 ppb, in 2015.

What handles it

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

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the health goal

1.3ppb

90th percentile, 2021 to 2023

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 1.3 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

Below EPA’s limits4

Haloacetic acids (HAA5)

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

26.5ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 4.5 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 26.5 ppb, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. Its highest single sample was 52.9 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 4.5 ppb. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 25.2 ppb, in 2017.

What handles it

No certification claim covers this compound yet.

Fluoride

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

0.37ppm

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 0.35 ppm

Averaged by year, the highest was 0.37 ppm, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. Its highest single sample was 0.41 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 0.35 ppm. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 0.43 ppm, in 2012.

What handles it

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

0.59ppm

Highest sample; found in 2 of 13

2026: not found

The highest sample, in 2020, was 0.59 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in any of its two samples. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 1.1 ppm, in 2017.

What handles it

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

Chromium (total)

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

1.3ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026, one sample: 1.2 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 1.3 ppb, in 2023, below EPA’s legal limit of 100 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its one sample was 1.2 ppb. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 2.3 ppb, in 2013.

What handles it

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

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Arsenic, Lead

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

  • NSF/ANSI 58

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

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Arsenic, Lead

    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 reverse osmosis systems, ranked

The best water filters for lead, ranked

Hardness

Very hard, typically 303 mg/L (17.7 grains per gallon), across 2 sampling points, 2015 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 at 17.7 grains per gallon, salt includedSoftener or salt-free conditioner?Kansas water hardness, utility by utility

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
BromateThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2026 to June 30, 20260.026 MG/LArchived
BromateThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJan. 1, 2026 to March 31, 20260.029 MG/LArchived
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2024 to Sept. 30, 20240.082 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJan. 1, 2019 to March 31, 20190.082 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2018 to Dec. 31, 20180.083 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2018 to Sept. 30, 20180.086 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2016 to June 30, 20160.084 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJan. 1, 2016 to March 31, 20160.089 MG/LResolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 7 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), arsenic, haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate and chromium (total) results here are Kansas’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. City of Herington’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; Kansas’s results run from Jan. 7, 2020 to Aug. 26, 2026.

Testing your own tap

City of Herington’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 Kansas certifies.

The 3 labs Kansas certifies closest to the area City of Herington serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Irwin Army Community Hospital-Water Laboratory-PH-EH

    Fort Riley, KS · about 29 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (785) 239-7516

  • Pace Analytical Services, Inc. - Salina

    Salina, KS · about 42 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate

    (913) 599-5665

  • Meridian Analytical Laboratory - Wichita

    Wichita, KS · about 75 miles

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

    (316) 618-8787

All 47 certified labs for Kansas

Sources

PWSID KS2004102. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Dickinson County

All Kansas utilities

What to do next