Las Playas
What EPA’s and Texas’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
- 486 people
- Connections
- 162
- Water source
- Groundwater
- Based in
- Austin, TX
- County
- Brazoria
- Owner
- Private
The ZIP code it serves
The short answer
1 result is above the limit’s level with no violation recorded, and 1 more is above the health goal. The worst: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), above the limit’s level, no violation. No health-based violations on file since 2016.
What handles itWhat was found
Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 1996 to 2025.
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, 1997. None since is on file, so it is not counted as a current finding.
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate, arsenic, chromium (total) and uranium: Texas’s own results, samples taken from March 9, 2020 to Sept. 8, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.
Above the limit’s level, no violation recorded1
Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
Forms or is added in treatment
152ppb
Highest yearly average, 2022 to 2026
Averaged by year, the highest was 152 ppb, in 2026, about twice EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. EPA judges this limit on running averages at each sampling point, and recorded no violation for total trihalomethanes (TTHM) at this utility since 2020. Results like these with no violation often include water sampled before treatment or blending; the utility’s annual report says what reaches the tap. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 20.5 ppb, in 2016.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction”
Above the health goal1
Lead
Comes from pipes, often your own
0.59ppb
90th percentile, 2025
In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 0.59 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
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Lead Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Lead Reduction”
Below EPA’s limits3
Haloacetic acids (HAA5)
Forms or is added in treatment
21.4ppb
Highest yearly average, 2022 to 2026
Averaged by year, the highest was 21.4 ppb, in 2026, below EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 10.9 ppb, in 2019.
What handles it
No certification claim covers this compound yet.
Fluoride
Forms or is added in treatment
0.84ppm
Highest yearly average, 2021 to 2024
Averaged by year, the highest was 0.84 ppm, in 2024, below EPA’s legal limit of 4.0 ppm. That was also the latest year on file. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 0.91 ppm, in 2018.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Fluoride Reduction”
- NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Fluoride”
Nitrate
Comes from the source
0.06ppm
Highest sample; found in 1 of 7
2026: not found
The highest sample, in 2022, was 0.06 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 0.16 ppm, in 2018.
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
- Chromium (total)
- Uranium
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
Aquasana Clean Water Machine (AQ-CWM2)
Countertop
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead
Brita Hub Countertop Water Filter System (87340)
Countertop
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 53checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead
Ninja HydraSense Countertop Water Filtration System (WF1001)
Countertop
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 9, 2026
Certified for: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead
PUR PLUS Faucet Filtration System, Horizontal (PFM400H)
Faucet mount
- NSF listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
- IAPMO listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
Certified for: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead
Brita Elite Water Filter Faucet System (SAFF-100/FF-100)
Faucet mount
- WQA listing:NSF/ANSI 42NSF/ANSI 53NSF/ANSI 401checked Oct. 16, 2026
Certified for: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead
Violations since 2016
No health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016. There are 2 monitoring or reporting violations: a sample missed, late or not reported.
What this report can’t tell you
Everything else. Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), haloacetic acids (HAA5), fluoride, nitrate, arsenic, chromium (total) and uranium results here are Texas’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Las Playas’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; Texas’s results run from March 9, 2020 to Sept. 8, 2026.
Testing your own tap
The 3 labs Texas certifies closest to the area Las Playas serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.
Brazoria County Health Department Water Laboratory
Angleton, TX · about 16 miles
Certified for bacteria
Eurofins Xenco, LLC -Houston
Stafford, TX · about 46 miles
Certified for lead and copper
ALS Laboratory Group, Environmental Services Division – Houston, Texas
Houston, TX · about 49 miles
Certified for lead and copper
Texas Well Owner Network, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension: Well Informed screening events, where well owners bring in water samples to be screened for common contaminants, followed by an hour-long session explaining the results. Upcoming events are on the network's calendar. Trainings, Texas Well Owner Network.
All 80 certified labs for TexasSources
- EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, file of Oct. 15, 2026
- EPA SDWA bulk download (SDWIS federal data), 2026 Q3
- Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Texas Drinking Water Viewer, results from Jan. 7, 2020 to Oct. 6, 2026, read Oct. 16, 2026
- EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, file of Feb. 5, 2024
- Certified labs: TCEQ, drinking water laboratories approved for public water system samples, read Oct. 10, 2026; distances from the Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation area gazetteer
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.
PWSID TX0200067. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.
What to do next
- Read up on the 2 results above a lineWhat each one does to health, where it comes from, and the certification claim that addresses it.Start with Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)
- Get the utility’s own reportLas Playas 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
- Compare certified filtersWhat the filters certified for these results cost over five years, cartridges included.Compare five-year costs