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Is Paterson, NJ tap water safe?

Passaic Valley Water Commission serves Paterson, by EPA’s records. Here is what EPA’s and CDC’s records show for it, against the legal limits and the stricter health goals.

Matched to your utility using EPA records.

The short answer

Passaic Valley Water Commission serves Paterson. In EPA’s and CDC’s records it has 2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029 and 1 result above the health goal, and 1 health-based violation since 2016.

The worst: PFOA at 11.5 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.

The water from Passaic Valley Water Commission is soft to very hard depending on the source, 42 to 242 mg/L (2.5 to 14.2 grains per gallon). How it compares.

Some homes in a town are on private wells or a small system of their own. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours.

What handles it

Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in Passaic Valley Water Commission’s water.

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Every claim, and more filters, in the full report

Water testing near Paterson

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 New Jersey certifies.

The 3 labs New Jersey certifies closest to Paterson, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

All 89 certified labs for New Jersey

ZIP codes in Paterson

Which ZIP codes are in Paterson: 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. Certified labs: NJDEP Office of Quality Assurance, certified drinking water labs; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.

Near Paterson

Other towns in Passaic County with a page of their own.

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