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Whidbey West Water Assoc.

What EPA’s and Washington’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
415 people
Connections
189
Water source
Groundwater
Based in
Coupeville, WA
County
Island
Owner
Private
Hardness
Very hard
The ZIP code it serves

98277

The short answer

2 results are above EPA’s legal limit, and 2 more are above the health goal. The worst: Haloacetic acids (HAA5), above the legal limit. 13 health-based violations since 2016.

What handles it

What was found

Lead and copper: EPA SDWIS monitoring periods ending 2007 to 2025.

Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM), arsenic, nitrate, chromium (total) and fluoride: Washington’s own results, samples taken from March 25, 2020 to Aug. 28, 2026, with EPA’s 2012 to 2019 file for earlier years.

Above the legal limit2

Haloacetic acids (HAA5)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the legal limit

93.1ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 93.1 ppb, in 2026, above EPA’s legal limit of 60 ppb. Its highest single sample was 120 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. EPA recorded violations for haloacetic acids (HAA5) at this utility in 2020, 2021 and 2026. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 57.9 ppb, in 2015, and EPA recorded a violation in 2019.

What handles it

No certification claim covers this compound yet.

Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)

Forms or is added in treatment

Above the legal limit

117ppb

Highest yearly average, 2020 to 2026

Averaged by year, the highest was 117 ppb, in 2026, above EPA’s legal limit of 80 ppb. Its highest single sample was 155 ppb. That was also the latest year on file. EPA recorded violations for total trihalomethanes (TTHM) at this utility in 2020, 2021, 2024 and 2026. Earlier, from 2012 to 2019, EPA’s file shows a highest yearly average of 110 ppb, in 2013, 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”

Above the health goal2

Arsenic

Comes from the source

Above the health goal

9.3ppb

Highest yearly average, 2021 to 2025

2025 average: 4.3 ppb

Averaged by year, the highest was 9.3 ppb, in 2021: below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppb, but above its health goal of zero. In 2025, the latest year on file, its two samples averaged 4.3 ppb.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction”

Lead

Comes from pipes, often your own

Above the health goal

2.2ppb

90th percentile, 2023 to 2025

In the latest period, 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below 2.2 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 limits1

Nitrate

Comes from the source

Below EPA’s limits

0.13ppm

Highest sample; found in 1 of 11

2025, one sample: 0.13 ppm

The highest sample, in 2025, was 0.13 ppm, below EPA’s legal limit of 10 ppm. That was also the latest year on file, and its one sample was 0.13 ppm.

What handles it

  • NSF/ANSI 58 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite Reduction”
  • NSF/ANSI 53 look for “Nitrate/Nitrite (30 ppm challenge)”
2 compounds tested and not foundBelow the reporting level in every sample. Not found is not the same as zero.
  • Chromium (total)
  • Fluoride

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, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Arsenic, Lead

    Other certifiers’ wording: VOC Reduction; Arsenic (III) (50 ppb influent level)

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Claims: Trihalomethanes (TTHM) Reduction, Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=50 ppb Reduction, Lead Reduction

    For: Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Arsenic, Lead

    Other certifiers’ wording: Arsenic (Pentavalent)<=300 ppb Reduction; Arsenic (V) (300 ppb influent level)

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 reverse osmosis systems, ranked

The best water filters for lead, ranked

Hardness

Very hard, typically 285 mg/L (16.7 grains per gallon), across 3 sampling points, 2021 to 2024.

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 16.7 grains per gallon, salt includedSoftener or salt-free conditioner?Washington water hardness, utility by utility

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, 2026 to June 30, 202671.7 UG/LArchived
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2026 to June 30, 2026101 UG/LArchived
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2024 to June 30, 202499.6 UG/LArchived
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 202198.1 UG/LResolved
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2021 to Dec. 31, 202170 UG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2021 to Sept. 30, 202189.7 UG/LResolved
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJan. 1, 2021 to March 31, 202166.5 UG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2020 to Sept. 30, 2020101 UG/LResolved
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2020 to Sept. 30, 202080.2 UG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageApril 1, 2020 to June 30, 2020155 UG/LResolved
TTHMThe running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 201987.7 UG/LResolved
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageOct. 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 201975.6 UG/LResolved
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)The running average was above the legal limit.EPA: Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, AverageJuly 1, 2019 to Sept. 30, 201970.3 UG/LResolved
Health-based violations only. Resolved and archived mean the utility returned to compliance or the state closed the record. 6 monitoring or reporting violations not shown.

What this report can’t tell you

  • Everything else. Haloacetic acids (HAA5), total trihalomethanes (TTHM), arsenic, nitrate, chromium (total) and fluoride results here are Washington’s own from 2020 on, with EPA’s national file for 2012 to 2019. Whidbey West Water Assoc.’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; Washington’s results run from March 25, 2020 to Aug. 28, 2026.

Testing your own tap

Whidbey West Water Assoc.’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 Washington certifies.

The 3 labs Washington certifies closest to the area Whidbey West Water Assoc. serves, in a straight line. Call first: certification is test by test, and not every lab takes samples from homeowners.

  • Eurofins DW and WW West, Washington Laboratory

    Burlington, WA · about 18 miles

    Certified for bacteria, nitrate, minerals and other inorganics, disinfection byproducts

    (360) 757-1400

  • Precision Analytical Laboratories, LLC

    Everett, WA · about 29 miles

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

    (425) 740-4597

  • Everett Environmental Laboratory

    Everett, WA · about 31 miles

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

    (425) 257-8230

All 84 certified labs for Washington

Sources

PWSID WA5336314. Rebuilt from EPA data on Oct. 18, 2026.

Also in Island County

All Washington utilities

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