John Day Water District
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
- 350 people
- Connections
- 101
- Water source
- Surface water bought from another system
- Based in
- Astoria, OR
- County
- Clatsop
- Owner
- Private
The short answer
Nothing in EPA’s and CDC’s records for this utility is above a health goal. That covers nitrate, arsenic and other regulated chemicals, plus lead and copper, not everything. 1 health-based violation since 2016.
What was found
Copper: EPA’s file records a utility’s copper only when it exceeds the action level. The last here was 1.5 ppm, for the period ending Dec. 31, 1994. None since is on file, so it is not counted as a current finding.
Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM), nitrate, arsenic and uranium: Oregon’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.
Below EPA’s limits3
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
Forms or is added in treatment
23.5ppb
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2022
2022 average: 15.6 ppb
Averaged by year, the highest was 23.5 ppb, in 2020, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. In 2022, the latest year on file, it averaged 15.6 ppb. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 36.1 ppb, in 2016.
What handles it
No certification claim covers this compound yet.
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
Forms or is added in treatment
25.6ppb
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2022
2022 average: 23.4 ppb
Averaged by year, the highest was 25.6 ppb, in 2020, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. In 2022, the latest year on file, it averaged 23.4 ppb. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 31.5 ppb, in 2013.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
Nitrate
Comes from the source
0.38ppm
Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2023
2023 average: 0.19 ppm
Averaged by year, the highest was 0.38 ppm, in 2022, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2023, the latest year on file, it averaged 0.19 ppm.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”
3 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
- Arsenic
- Lead
- Uranium
Violations since 2016
| Contaminant or rule | Type | Period | Measured | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lead and Copper Rule Revisions | The required inventory of lead service lines was not completed or submitted on time.EPA: LSL Inventory | Oct. 17, 2024 | — | Resolved |
| Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 20 monitoring or reporting violations not shown. | ||||
What this report can’t tell you
Everything else. Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM), nitrate, arsenic and uranium results here are Oregon’s yearly averages as CDC publishes them, from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. John Day Water District’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; CDC’s yearly averages for Oregon cover 2020 to 2023.
Testing your own tap
No lab Oregon certifies is within 75 miles of the area John Day Water District serves on the state’s list. Some take samples by mail; the state’s page lists them all.
Oregon State University Extension Well Water Program: Nitrate screening of well water at many of its groundwater education events. The screening is free. Water Testing Guidance for Private Wells, OSU Well Water Program.
All 91 certified labs for OregonSources
- 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 Oregon supplied to CDC, 2020 to 2023, read Oct. 8, 2026. TapBuff’s comparisons with EPA’s limits are its own, not CDC’s or Oregon’s.
- EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, file of Feb. 5, 2024
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.
PWSID OR4100060. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.
What to do next
- Nothing here is above a health goalIn EPA’s and CDC’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 reportJohn Day Water District 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