North Haven Water Department
What EPA’s and CDC’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
- 740 people
- Connections
- 296
- Water source
- Surface water
- Based in
- North Haven, ME
- County
- Knox
- Owner
- Local government
The ZIP code it serves
The short answer
1 result is above EPA’s legal limit, and 2 more are above the health goal. The worst: Copper, above the action level. No health-based violations on file since 2016.
What handles itWhat was found
Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 1993 to 2023.
Arsenic, haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and nitrate: Maine’s yearly averages per water system, as CDC’s Environmental Public Health Tracking Network publishes them, 2020 to 2023, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.
Chromium (total), fluoride and uranium: EPA’s compliance monitoring file, samples taken from June 18, 2012 to Sept. 10, 2019. Newer results are in the utility’s annual water quality report.
Above the legal limit1
Copper
Comes from pipes, often your own
1.4ppm
90th percentile, 2021 to 2023
In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 1.4 ppm, above EPA’s action level of 1.3 ppm.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Copper Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Copper Reduction”
Above the health goal2
Arsenic
Comes from the source
0.5ppb
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2023
2023: not found
Averaged by year, the highest was 0.5 ppb, in 2022: below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. In 2023, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found.
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
0.64ppb
90th percentile, 2025
In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 0.64 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
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Lead Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Lead Reduction”
Below EPA’s limits4
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
Forms or is added in treatment
53.5ppb
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2023
Averaged by year, the highest was 53.5 ppb, in 2023, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 14.3 ppb, in 2013.
What handles it
No certification claim covers this compound yet.
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
Forms or is added in treatment
49.7ppb
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2023
Averaged by year, the highest was 49.7 ppb, in 2023, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 9.7 ppb, in 2013.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
Chromium (total)
Comes from the source
2.2ppb
Highest yearly average, 2012 to 2019
2019: not found
Averaged by year, the highest was 2.2 ppb, in 2012, below EPA’s legal limit of 100 ppb. In 2019, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Chromium (Hexavalent) Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Chromium Reduction”
Nitrate
Comes from the source
0.2ppm
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2023
Averaged by year, the highest was 0.2 ppm, in 2023, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 0.19 ppm, in 2015.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”
2 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
- Fluoride
- Uranium
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: Copper Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction
For: Copper, Arsenic, Lead
Other certifiers’ wording: Arsenic (III) (50 ppb influent level)
- NSF/ANSI 58
Claims: Copper Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction
For: Copper, 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
Aquasana SmartFlow Reverse Osmosis (AQ-SFRO2)
Under-sink reverse osmosis
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Copper, Arsenic, Lead
Brondell Capella RC250 Reverse Osmosis System
Under-sink reverse osmosis
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Copper, Arsenic, Lead
Under-sink reverse osmosis
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 58checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Copper, Arsenic, Lead
Countertop reverse osmosis
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 58NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: Copper, Arsenic, Lead
PUR PLUS 11-Cup Pitcher (PPT111W)
Pitcher
- NSF listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: Copper, Lead
Violations since 2016
No health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016. There are 2 monitoring or reporting violations: a sample missed, late or not reported.
What this report can’t tell you
Everything else. Arsenic, haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and nitrate results here are Maine’s yearly averages as CDC publishes them, from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Chromium (total), fluoride and uranium come from EPA’s file alone, which ends in 2019. North Haven Water Department’s own annual report, which it must send you every year, has newer results for those and 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; CDC’s yearly averages for Maine cover 2020 to 2023; EPA’s compliance samples are from June 18, 2012 to Sept. 10, 2019.
Testing your own tap
The 3 labs Maine certifies closest to the area North Haven Water Department serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
East Boothbay, ME · about 41 miles
Certified for PFAS
(207) 315-2567Website: Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
Maine Coast Lab dba Water Quality and Compliance Services, Inc.
Wiscasset, ME · about 42 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate
(207) 882-5476Website: Maine Coast Lab dba Water Quality and Compliance Services, Inc.
NELAnalytical
Winslow, ME · about 45 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, radioactivity
Maine Health and Environmental Testing Laboratory: Well water test kits ordered online, from a bacteria-only test to full panels for new wells and home sales. The lab must receive the sample within 30 hours of collection. The basic safety test is $42, bacteria alone $27, first-draw lead $32, and the fuller well tests $127 to $147. Maine Private Well and Radiological Water and Air Test.
All 53 certified labs for MaineSources
- EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, file of Oct. 15, 2026
- EPA SDWA bulk download (SDWIS federal data), 2026 Q3
- CDC Environmental Public Health Tracking Network, yearly averages Maine supplied to CDC, 2020 to 2023, read Oct. 8, 2026. TapBuff’s comparisons with EPA’s limits are its own, not CDC’s or Maine’s.
- EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, file of Feb. 5, 2024
- Certified labs: Maine CDC Drinking Water Program, all accredited laboratories and in-state commercial drinking water labs, read Oct. 10, 2026; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.
PWSID ME0091130. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.
What to do next
- Read up on the 3 results above a lineWhat each one does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.Start with Copper
- Get the utility’s own reportNorth Haven Water Department must send you a water quality report every year. It covers contaminants this page does not show, and has newer results than EPA’s national file for the ones here that come from it.How to read it
- Test your own tap for leadYour service line, solder and fixtures decide the lead at your faucet, not the utility’s average.Lead in your water: what to do
- Compare certified filtersWhat the filters certified for these results cost over five years, cartridges included.Compare five-year costs