Stephen
What EPA’s and Minnesota’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
- 568 people
- Connections
- 315
- Water source
- Groundwater bought from another system
- Based in
- Stephen, MN
- County
- Marshall
- Owner
- Local government
The ZIP code it serves
The short answer
Nothing in EPA’s and Minnesota’s records for this utility is above a health goal. That covers nitrate, arsenic and other regulated chemicals, plus lead and copper, not everything. No health-based violations on file since 2016.
What was found
Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and nitrate: Minnesota’s yearly summaries per water system, 2023 to 2025.
Below EPA’s limits2
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
Forms or is added in treatment
46.9ppb
Highest yearly average, 2023 to 2025
2025 average: 38.4 ppb
Averaged by year, the highest was 46.9 ppb, in 2023, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. In 2025, the latest year on file, it averaged 38.4 ppb.
What handles it
No certification claim covers this compound yet.
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
Forms or is added in treatment
62.5ppb
Highest yearly average, 2023 to 2025
Averaged by year, the highest was 62.5 ppb, in 2025, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. That was also the latest year on file.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
2 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
- Lead
- Nitrate
Violations since 2016
No health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016.
What this report can’t tell you
Everything else. Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and nitrate results here are Minnesota’s own yearly summaries from 2023 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Stephen’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; Minnesota’s yearly summaries cover 2023 to 2025.
Testing your own tap
No lab Minnesota certifies is within 75 miles of the area Stephen serves on the state’s list. Some take samples by mail; the state’s page lists them all.
All 24 certified labs for MinnesotaSources
- EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, file of Oct. 15, 2026
- EPA SDWA bulk download (SDWIS federal data), 2026 Q3
- Minnesota Department of Health, Minnesota Public Health Data Access, results from Jan. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2025, read Oct. 8, 2026
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.
PWSID MN1450009. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.
What to do next
- Nothing here is above a health goalIn EPA’s and Minnesota’s records for this utility. They don’t cover everything, which is why the next step matters.Every contaminant TapBuff tracks
- Get the utility’s own reportStephen must send you a water quality report every year. It covers contaminants this page does not show.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
- Decide if you want a filter at allA filter for taste or chlorine is a preference, not a need. The standards say what each kind can do.NSF/ANSI standards, decoded