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Is Harlan, KY tap water safe?

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

Matched to your utility using EPA records.

The short answer

2 of the 2 utilities serving Harlan have a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and Kentucky’s records: Harlan Municipal Water Works and Cawood Water District.

Harlan Municipal Water Works, which serves the most people here, has 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 42 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. A health benchmark is a level EPA screens with, not a legal limit.

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 Harlan’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.

Water testing near Harlan

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 Kentucky certifies.

TapBuff hasn’t read Kentucky’s list of certified labs yet. The national page links every state’s own list.

Certified labs, state by state

ZIP codes in Harlan

Which ZIP codes are in Harlan: 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.

Near Harlan

Towns nearby with a page of their own.

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