Is Avoca, PA tap water safe?
The short answer
None of the 3 utilities serving Avoca has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s and Pennsylvania’s records.
Paw Watres, which serves the most people here, has nothing above a health goal in EPA’s and Pennsylvania’s records. That data covers what its report lists, not everything.
A town can be served by more than one utility, and some homes are on private wells. The name on your water bill tells you which is yours, and your ZIP code narrows it down. They are listed by how many people each serves in Avoca’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
Paw Watres
Pennsylvania · serves 52,002 people · about 1,200 in Avoca
Nothing in its records is above a health goal.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Paw Nesbitt
Pennsylvania · serves 52,640 people · about 210 in Avoca
Nothing in its records is above a health goal.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
PA Amer Water Co Lake Scranton
Pennsylvania · serves 137,142 people · under 100 in Avoca
2 results above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029, 2 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: PFOS at 7.6 ppt, above EPA’s new limit, which takes effect in 2029.
No health-based violations since 2016
Water testing near Avoca
The 3 labs Pennsylvania certifies closest to Avoca, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Microbac Laboratories, Inc. - Pittston
Pittston, PA · about 3 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics, organic chemicals, disinfection byproducts
Princeton Analytical Labs
Dunmore, PA · about 8 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics
A E Kirby Memorial Health Center
Wilkes-Barre, PA · about 10 miles
Certified for bacteria, nitrate, lead and copper, metals, minerals and other inorganics
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 PennsylvaniaZIP codes in Avoca
Which ZIP codes are in Avoca: 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: Pennsylvania DEP Laboratory Accreditation Program, accredited labs for drinking water; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near Avoca
Other towns in Luzerne County with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read Paw Watres’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- 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
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water