Surf City Water Dept water quality report, rewritten
- Serves
- 10,000
- Connections
- 2,895
- Water source
- Groundwater
- Based in
- Surf City Boro, NJ
- County
- Ocean
- Owner
- Local government
The ZIP code it serves
PWSID NJ1531001 · EPA data
Read this first
- Lithium (above EPA’s health benchmark) was found in six of 6 samples, highest 13 ppb. Above EPA’s health reference level of 10 ppb, a screening level rather than an enforceable limit.
No health-based violations on file since 2016. EPA lists 80 monitoring or reporting violations, which are paperwork and testing lapses rather than water quality findings.
What was found
Highlighted: above the health goal, or EPA’s health benchmark where there is no goal. Circled: above the legal limit in at least one sample, or the action level. Every scale puts that line at its middle.
PFAS and lithium: EPA UCMR 5, samples taken from March 21, 2023 to April 23, 2024. Each blue tick on a scale is one sample where it was found.
Lithium (above EPA’s health benchmark)
Comes from the source
13ppb
Highest of 6 samples; found in six
Above EPA’s health reference level of 10 ppb, a screening level rather than an enforceable limit.
What handles it
No certification claim covers this compound yet.
Tested and not found
Below EPA’s minimum reporting level in every sample taken from March 21, 2023 to April 23, 2024. Not found means not measured above that level, which is not the same as zero.
All 30 compounds tested and not found
- 11Cl-PF3OUdS
- 4:2 FTS
- 6:2 FTS
- 8:2 FTS
- 9Cl-PF3ONS
- ADONA
- HFPO-DA (GenX)
- Lead
- NEtFOSAA
- NFDHA
- NMeFOSAA
- PFBA
- PFBS
- PFDA
- PFDoA
- PFEESA
- PFHpA
- PFHpS
- PFHxA
- PFHxS
- PFMBA
- PFMPA
- PFNA
- PFOA
- PFOS
- PFPeA
- PFPeS
- PFTA
- PFTrDA
- PFUnA
Violations since 2016
No health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016. There are 80 monitoring or reporting violations: a sample missed, late or not reported.
What this report cannot tell you
- Levels of everything else. Federal bulk data carries results for PFAS, lithium, lead and copper, and violations for the rest. Nitrate, arsenic, disinfection byproducts and other levels are in Surf City Water Dept’s own annual report, which it must send you every year.
- 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.
- Anything after the latest data. SDWIS data is from 2026 Q2; UCMR 5 samples are from March 21, 2023 to April 23, 2024.
Other New Jersey utilities
- Veolia Water New Jersey Hackensack792,713
- NJ American Water - Raritan615,430
- NJ American Water - Coastal North377,613
- Passaic Valley Water Commission310,483
- Newark Water Department294,274
- NJ American Water - Western274,291
- Jersey City Mua262,000
- Middlesex Water Company233,376
- Wildwood City Water Department218,472
- NJ American Water - Short Hills217,230
- Trenton Water Works217,000
- Atlantic City Mua152,415
Sources
- EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, file of Aug. 27, 2026
- EPA SDWA bulk download (SDWIS federal data), 2026 Q2
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.
What to do next
Read up on Lithium
What each one does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.
About LithiumGet the utility’s own report
Surf City Water Dept must send you a water quality report every year. It lists nitrate, arsenic and byproduct levels this page cannot.
How to read itTest your own tap for lead
Your service line, solder and fixtures decide the lead at your faucet, not the utility’s average.
Lead in your water: what to doDecide if you want a filter at all
A filter for taste or chlorine is a preference, not a need. The standards say what each kind can do.
NSF/ANSI standards, decoded