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Nelson Township Authority

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
300 people
Connections
123
Water source
Surface water
Based in
Nelson, PA
County
Tioga
Owner
Local government
The 2 ZIP codes it serves

16929, 16940

The short answer

2 results are above EPA’s legal limit, and 1 more is above the health goal. The worst: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), above the legal limit. 13 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 March 20, 2025 to Nov. 5, 2025.

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 1993 to 1996.

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), nitrate, fluoride, arsenic, chromium (total) and uranium: Pennsylvania’s own results, samples taken from Feb. 3, 2020 to Aug. 5, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

PFAS: None of the six PFAS in EPA’s 2024 drinking water rule was found in this utility’s samples.

EPA’s 2024 PFAS rule, compound by compound

PFASEPA’s limitResult
PFOA4.0 pptNot foundNot found in any of 4 samples
PFOS4.0 pptNot foundNot found in any of 4 samples
PFHxS10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 3 samples
PFNA10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 3 samples
HFPO-DA (GenX)10 pptNot foundNot found in any of 3 samples
PFBSIndex onlyNot foundNot found in any of 3 samples
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.

Above the legal limit2

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the legal limit

73.3ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 71.9 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 73.3 ppb, in 2020, below EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. Its highest single sample was 125 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 71.9 ppb. EPA judges this limit at each sampling point, and recorded a violation for total trihalomethanes (TTHM) at this utility in 2020. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 101 ppb, in 2019, and EPA recorded a violation in 2019.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”

Haloacetic acids (HAA5)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the legal limit

48ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026 average: 44.8 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 48 ppb, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. Its highest single sample was 80.3 ppb. In 2026, the latest year on file, its three samples averaged 44.8 ppb. EPA judges this limit at each sampling point, and recorded a violation for haloacetic acids (HAA5) at this utility in 2024. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 45.3 ppb, in 2019.

What handles it

No certification claim covers this compound yet.

Above the health goal1

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the health goal

3.0ppb

90th percentile, 1996

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 3.0 ppb, below EPA’s action level of 15 ppb. The action level drops to 10 ppb on Nov. 1, 2027. EPA’s health goal for lead is zero.

What handles it

Below EPA’s limits2

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

0.25ppm

Highest sample; found in 1 of 6

2026: not found

The highest sample, in 2020, was 0.25 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest sample of 0.38 ppm, in 2018.

What handles it

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

Fluoride

Forms or is added in treatment

Below EPA’s limits

0.097ppm

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

2026: not found

Averaged by year, the highest was 0.097 ppm, in 2021, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. In 2026, the latest year on file, it wasn’t found in its one sample.

What handles it

9 compounds tested and not foundIncluding all six PFAS in EPA’s 2024 rule. Below the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.

From routine monitoring

  • Arsenic
  • Chromium (total)
  • Uranium

PFAS, from Pennsylvania’s own monitoring

  • HFPO-DA (GenX)
  • PFBS
  • PFHxS
  • PFNA
  • PFOA
  • PFOS

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: Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction, Lead Reduction

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead

    Other certifiers’ wording: VOC Reduction

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction, Lead Reduction

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead

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

Violations since 2016

Contaminant or ruleTypePeriodMeasuredStatus
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2024 to June 30, 20240.072 MG/LResolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalOct. 1, 2023 to Dec. 31, 2023—Resolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalApril 1, 2022 to June 30, 2022—Resolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalJan. 1, 2022 to March 31, 2022—Resolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalOct. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 2021—Resolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalJuly 1, 2021 to Sept. 30, 2021—Resolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2020 to Sept. 30, 20200.093 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2020 to June 30, 20200.095 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJan. 1, 2020 to March 31, 20200.099 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 20190.1 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2019 to Sept. 30, 20190.084 MG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2019 to June 30, 20190.083 MG/LResolved
Total organic carbonNot enough organic matter was removed. It reacts with disinfectant to form byproducts.EPA: Treatment Technique Precursor RemovalApril 1, 2017 to June 30, 2017—Resolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 26 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), nitrate, fluoride, arsenic, chromium (total) and uranium results here are Pennsylvania’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Nelson Township Authority’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 Feb. 3, 2020 to Aug. 5, 2026; Pennsylvania’s PFAS results run from March 20, 2025 to Nov. 5, 2025.

Testing your own tap

Nelson Township Authority’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 Nelson Township Authority serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • LEAP Testing Service

    Sayre, PA · about 33 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate

    (570) 887-4645

  • Pace Analytical Services, LLC - Wysox

    Wysox, PA · about 45 miles

    Certified for bacteria

    (570) 866-0195

  • Pace Analytical Services LLC - Williamsport, PA

    Williamsport, PA · about 47 miles

    (570) 326-4001

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 PA2590051. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Tioga County

All Pennsylvania utilities

What to do next