Onalaska Waterworkswater quality report, rewritten
- Serves
- 18,000
- Connections
- 5,110
- Water source
- Groundwater
- Based in
- Onalaska, WI
- County
- La Crosse
- Owner
- Local government
ZIP codes served: 54650
PWSID WI63203272026 edition · EPA data
Read this first
- Copper The 90th-percentile result was 1.5 ppm, above the 1.3 ppm action level.
No health-based violations on file since 2016.
What handles itWhat was found
Highlighted: above the health goal. Circled: above the legal limit in at least one sample. Every scale puts the legal line at its middle.
Copper
Comes from pipes, often your own
1.5ppm
90th percentile, 2013
The 90th-percentile result was 1.5 ppm, above the 1.3 ppm action level.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53Look for: Copper Reduction
- NSF/ANSI 58Look for: Copper Reduction
EPA SDWIS, lead and copper monitoring periods ending 2013. The pointer marks the latest period; each blue tick is an earlier one.
PFBS
Comes from the source
4.2ppt
Highest of 8 samples; found in two
Below EPA’s hazard index benchmark of 2,000 ppt. PFBS has no legal limit or health goal of its own.
What handles it
- NSF/ANSI 53Look for: Total PFAS Reduction
EPA UCMR 5, samples taken from Jan. 10, 2023 to July 11, 2023. Each blue tick is one sample where it was found.
Tested and not found
Below EPA’s minimum reporting level in every sample taken from Jan. 10, 2023 to July 11, 2023. Not found means not measured above that level, which is not the same as zero.
- 11Cl-PF3OUdS
- 4:2 FTS
- 6:2 FTS
- 8:2 FTS
- 9Cl-PF3ONS
- ADONA
- HFPO-DA (GenX)
- Lead
- Lithium
- NEtFOSAA
- NFDHA
- NMeFOSAA
- PFBA
- PFDA
- PFDoA
- PFEESA
- PFHpA
- PFHpS
- PFHxA
- PFHxS
- PFMBA
- PFMPA
- PFNA
- PFOA
- PFOS
- PFPeA
- PFPeS
- PFTA
- PFTrDA
- PFUnA
Violations since 2016
No health-based violations on file with EPA since 2016.
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
Claim: Copper Reduction
For: Copper
- NSF/ANSI 58
Claim: Copper Reduction
For: Copper
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
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
Brita Tahoe Pitcher with Original Filter (OB60, OB03)
Pitcher
Certified for: Copper
AquaTru Classic (AT2000)
Countertop reverse osmosis
Certified for: Copper
What this report cannot tell you
- Levels of everything else. Federal bulk data carries results for PFAS, lithium, lead and copper, and violations for the rest. Nitrate, arsenic, disinfection byproducts and other levels are in Onalaska Waterworks’s own annual report, which it must send you every year.
- 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.
- Anything after the latest data. SDWIS data is from 2026 Q2; UCMR 5 samples are from Jan. 10, 2023 to July 11, 2023.
Other Wisconsin utilities
- Milwaukee Waterworks626,000
- Madison Water Utility272,000
- Green Bay Waterworks107,369
- Racine Waterworks105,100
- Kenosha Water Utility99,218
- Appleton Waterworks74,511
- Waukesha Water Utility70,718
- Eau Claire Waterworks70,587
- Janesville Water Utility64,415
- West Allis Waterworks63,240
- Oshkosh Waterworks63,000
- La Crosse Waterworks53,000
Sources
- EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, file of Aug. 27, 2026
- EPA SDWA bulk download (SDWIS federal data), 2026 Q2
- Limits and goals: each contaminant’s page, with its EPA source.
- How this page is built: methodology.