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Lake Wallenpaupack Sandy Shore

What EPA’s and Pennsylvania’s records show in this utility’s water: PFAS; nitrate, arsenic and other regulated chemicals; lead and copper; and violations since 2016, with the certification that handles each result.

Serves
499 people
Connections
170
Water source
Groundwater
Based in
Lakeville, PA
County
Wayne
Owner
Private
Hardness
Moderately hard
The ZIP code it serves

18438

The short answer

2 results are above EPA’s legal limit, and 2 more are above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029. The worst: Lead, above the action level. 4 health-based violations since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

PFAS: Pennsylvania’s own results under its PFAS rule, entry point samples taken from Jan. 11, 2024 to Aug. 10, 2026.

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 1993 to 2001.

Nitrate, arsenic, chromium (total), fluoride, haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and uranium: Pennsylvania’s own results, samples taken from May 11, 2020 to Nov. 18, 2025, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

PFAS: PFOS, PFOA and PFBS were found, of the six PFAS in EPA’s 2024 drinking water rule; their results are below. Two other PFAS with no federal limit were found, the highest PFHxA at 3.3 ppt: see them below.

EPA’s 2024 PFAS rule, compound by compound

PFASEPA’s limitResult
PFOA4.0 pptAbove EPA’s new limit (2029)12.7 ppt highest, found in 10 of 23 samples. Details
PFOS4.0 pptAbove EPA’s new limit (2029)16.2 ppt highest, found in 10 of 23 samples. Details
PFHxS10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 19 samples
PFNA10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 19 samples
HFPO-DA (GenX)10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 19 samples
PFBSIndex onlyBelow EPA’s limits3.2 ppt highest, found in 6 of 19 samples. Details
Results from Pennsylvania’s own PFAS monitoring, samples where water enters the pipes; each compound’s card has its four-quarter averages, the way limits are judged. The limits are EPA’s 2024 rule, with compliance due from 2029; EPA has since proposed changes to some of them, explained on each compound’s page. Pennsylvania’s own limits for PFOA and PFOS are in force now. PFBS has no limit of its own and counts only toward EPA’s Hazard Index, which TapBuff works out only from UCMR 5’s averages, so it isn’t given here.

About PFAS certifications

NSF’s PFAS claims are tested to below 20 ppt. EPA’s limit is 4.0 ppt, and EPA says no certification yet shows a filter reaching its levels.

Above the legal limit2

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the action level

25ppb

90th percentile, 2001

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 25 ppb, above EPA’s action level of 15 ppb. The action level drops to 10 ppb on Nov. 1, 2027, and this result is at or above that. EPA’s health goal for lead is zero.

What handles it

Copper

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the action level

1.7ppm

90th percentile, 2025

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 1.7 ppm, above EPA’s action level of 1.3 ppm.

What handles it

Above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 20292

PFOS

Comes from the source

Above EPA’s new limit (2029)

16.2ppt

Highest sample, Jan. 11, 2024; found in 10 of 23

2026 average: 3.9 ppt

The highest sample was 16.2 ppt, about 4.1 times EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt, which takes effect in 2029. EPA’s health goal is zero. Compliance will be judged on a running annual average, not one sample. Averaged over four quarters at one entry point, the way both Pennsylvania’s limit and EPA’s are judged, the highest was 6.4 ppt, for the year to Dec. 31, 2024: below Pennsylvania’s limit of 18 ppt and above EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 3.9 ppt.

What handles it

PFOA

Comes from the source

Above EPA’s new limit (2029)

12.7ppt

Highest sample, Jan. 11, 2024; found in 10 of 23

2026 average: 4.0 ppt

The highest sample was 12.7 ppt, about 3.2 times EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt, which takes effect in 2029. EPA’s health goal is zero. Compliance will be judged on a running annual average, not one sample. Averaged over four quarters at one entry point, the way both Pennsylvania’s limit and EPA’s are judged, the highest was 5.6 ppt, for the year to Dec. 31, 2024: below Pennsylvania’s limit of 14 ppt and above EPA’s new limit of 4.0 ppt. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 4.0 ppt.

What handles it

Below EPA’s limits2

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

2.1ppm

Highest sample; found in 9 of 24

2025 average: 0.29 ppm

The highest sample, in 2020, was 2.1 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2025, the latest year on file, its four samples averaged 0.29 ppm. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 2.4 ppm, in 2018.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”

PFBS

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

3.2ppt

Highest sample, June 11, 2025; found in 6 of 19

2026 average: 1.0 ppt

The highest sample was 3.2 ppt, below EPA’s hazard index benchmark of 2,000 ppt. PFBS has no legal limit or health goal of its own. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 1.0 ppt.

What handles it

Also found, with no federal limit

EPA measured these PFAS to learn how often they occur. None has a legal limit or a health goal yet.

CompoundHighest sampleFound inCertification claim
PFHxA3.3 ppt6 of 19None covers it
PFHpA1.9 ppt1 of 19NSF/ANSI 53: Total PFAS Reduction
19 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.

From routine monitoring

  • Arsenic
  • Chromium (total)
  • Fluoride
  • Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
  • Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
  • Uranium

PFAS, from Pennsylvania’s own monitoring

  • 11Cl-PF3OUdS
  • 9Cl-PF3ONS
  • ADONA
  • HFPO-DA (GenX)
  • NEtFOSAA
  • NMeFOSAA
  • PFDA
  • PFDoA
  • PFHxS
  • PFNA
  • PFTA
  • PFTrDA
  • PFUnA

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: Lead Reduction, Copper Reduction, PFOS Reduction, PFOA Reduction

    For: Lead, Copper, PFOS, PFOA

    Other certifiers’ wording: Total PFAS Reduction; Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS); Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA)

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Lead Reduction, Copper Reduction, Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS), Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA)

    For: Lead, Copper, PFOS, PFOA

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

Compare five-year costs

The best water filters for lead, ranked

The best water filters for PFAS, ranked

Hardness

Moderately hard, 77 mg/L (4.5 grains per gallon), at its one sampling point, in 2025.

Hardness is calcium and magnesium. EPA sets no limit for it: it shows up as scale on fixtures and in water heaters, and as soap that won’t lather. USGS calls water above 60 mg/L moderately hard, above 120 hard and above 180 very hard.

Softeners compared at 4.5 grains per gallon, salt includedSoftener or salt-free conditioner?Pennsylvania water hardness, utility by utility

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
Groundwater RuleRequired treatment for surface water or groundwater was not met.EPA: Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR)Aug. 1, 2025 to Aug. 31, 2025—Resolved
Groundwater RuleRequired treatment for surface water or groundwater was not met.EPA: Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR)March 1, 2025 to March 31, 2025—Resolved
Groundwater RuleRequired treatment for surface water or groundwater was not met.EPA: Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR)Feb. 1, 2024 to Feb. 29, 2024—Resolved
Groundwater RuleRequired treatment for surface water or groundwater was not met.EPA: Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR)Feb. 1, 2020 to Feb. 29, 2020—Resolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 94 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Nitrate, arsenic, chromium (total), fluoride, haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM) and uranium results here are Pennsylvania’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Lake Wallenpaupack Sandy Shore’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; Pennsylvania’s results run from May 11, 2020 to Nov. 18, 2025; Pennsylvania’s PFAS results run from Jan. 11, 2024 to Aug. 10, 2026.

Testing your own tap

Lake Wallenpaupack Sandy Shore’s results are for the water it sends out. What your own service line, solder and fixtures add shows up only in a test of your tap, by a lab Pennsylvania certifies.

The 3 labs Pennsylvania certifies closest to the area Lake Wallenpaupack Sandy Shore serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Princeton Analytical Labs

    Dunmore, PA · about 20 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics

    (570) 209-7916

  • Microbac Laboratories, Inc. - Pittston

    Pittston, PA · about 27 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts

    (570) 348-0775

  • AG Environmental RSC LLC

    Ferndale, NY · about 33 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, radioactivity

    (845) 704-8151

Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Laboratory: Drinking water test kits from many county Extension offices, mailed back to the lab overnight with payment. Packages cover bacteria and basic chemistry, with add-ons for nitrate, metals, lead, and mining or gas drilling concerns. The standard package of bacteria, pH and total dissolved solids is $60, or $70 with nitrate; bacteria alone is $40, nitrate $15 and lead $25. Drinking Water Testing, Penn State Agricultural Analytical Services Lab.

All 108 certified labs for Pennsylvania

Sources

PWSID PA2640023. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Wayne County

All Pennsylvania utilities

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