Is Tea, SD tap water safe?
The short answer
None of the 4 utilities serving Tea has a result above a legal limit or action level, or a health-based violation since 2016, in EPA’s records.
Tea, which serves the most people here, has 1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 55.9 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark. Health goals are stricter than legal limits and are not enforced.
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 Tea’s ZIP codes, from EPA’s estimates.
- Open report
Tea
South Dakota · serves 7,381 people · about 640 in Tea
1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 55.9 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Sioux Falls
South Dakota · serves 216,462 people · about 610 in Tea
2 results above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 70.9 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Lincoln County Rural Water System
South Dakota · serves 5,965 people · about 160 in Tea
1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 55 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
No health-based violations since 2016
- Open report
Minnehaha Community Water Corp
South Dakota · serves 13,435 people · about 110 in Tea
1 result above the health goal and 1 result above EPA’s health benchmark. The worst: Lithium at 37.5 ppb, above EPA’s health benchmark.
No health-based violations since 2016
What handles it
Each of these is certified, on a certifier’s listing, for a result above a line in Tea’s water, which serves the most people here. Another utility’s report names what handles its own results.
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Brita Tahoe Pitcher with Elite Filter (OB60, OB06)
Pitcher
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 13, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 53checked Oct. 13, 2026
Certified for: Lead
Brita Everyday Pitcher with Elite Filter (OB46, OB06)
Pitcher
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 13, 2026
Certified for: Lead
PUR PLUS 11-Cup Pitcher (PPT111W)
Pitcher
- NSF listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 4, 2026
Certified for: Lead
Water testing near Tea
The 2 labs South Dakota certifies closest to Tea, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Sioux Falls Public Health Laboratory
Sioux Falls, SD · about 11 miles
Certified for bacteria
American Engineering Testing
Sioux Falls, SD · about 11 miles
Certified for bacteria
South Dakota Public Health Laboratory: Sample bottles for testing a private well for bacteria and nitrate, lead, or a new-well panel, ordered online from the lab or picked up at a County Extension office. Instructions and fees come with the bottles. Test a Private Well, South Dakota Department of Health.
All 16 certified labs for South DakotaWhich ZIP codes are in Tea: 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: South Dakota DANR, laboratories certified for the analysis of drinking water; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer.
Near Tea
Towns nearby with a page of their own.
What to do next
- Read Tea’s full reportEvery result with its dates, the violations, and the certification claim that handles each finding.Open the report
- About LithiumWhat it does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.About Lithium
- On a private well?No utility tests a well. A certified lab test is the first step.How to test well water