Is New Athens Tap Water Safe? Quality Report

Water source: SWP
Ownership: Local government
Counties served: St. Clair

Compliance record

Formal violations the EPA has on file for this supplier. A health-based violation means a contaminant limit or a required treatment was breached; the rest are monitoring or reporting failures — still violations, but not a measured health risk.

health-based violations

violations on file

still open

Violation	Type	Status	Period
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2018-01-01 → 2018-01-31
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2018-01-01 → 2018-01-31
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2018-01-01 → 2018-01-31
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2018-01-01 → 2018-01-31
TT	Health-based	Resolved	2018-01-01 → 2018-01-31
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2024-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2024-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2024-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2024-07-01
Other	Monitoring	Resolved	2023-07-01

Other contaminants detected

Each bar shows the measured level as a share of the EPA limit: green is well under, amber is close to it, red is over. For lead and copper the limit applies to exactly the 90th-percentile figure shown, so red there means a real exceedance. For everything else the limit applies to a running annual average while the figure is the single worst sample on record — over 100% is worth reading, but is not by itself a violation. Formal violations are listed separately.

Contaminant	Level vs EPA limit	Detection rate	Source	Period
Bromodichloromethane	19.8 µg/L No EPA limit set	53/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Chloroform	81.2 µg/L No EPA limit set	53/53	SYR4	2012–2019
TTHM	96.68 µg/L 121% of the EPA limit, in the worst sample — 80 µg/L	53/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Dibromochloromethane	8.5 µg/L No EPA limit set	49/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Dichloroacetic Acid	35.2 µg/L No EPA limit set	49/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	68.9 µg/L 115% of the EPA limit, in the worst sample — 60 µg/L	49/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Trichloroacetic Acid	33.7 µg/L No EPA limit set	48/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Copper	1190 µg/L 92% of the EPA limit 1300 µg/L	17/30	SYR4	2013–2019
Lead	0.0052 mg/L 35% of the EPA limit 0.0150 mg/L	16/16	LCR	2025
Dibromoacetic Acid	1.8 µg/L No EPA limit set	11/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Monochloroacetic Acid	4.8 µg/L No EPA limit set	4/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Bromoform	1 µg/L No EPA limit set	2/53	SYR4	2012–2019
Lead	6.7 µg/L 45% of the EPA limit 15 µg/L	1/30	SYR4	2013–2019
Monobromoacetic Acid	1.3 µg/L No EPA limit set	1/53	SYR4	2012–2019

Utility contact

Contact: BEHNKEN, JOE
Phone: 618-604-3262
Email: mayor@newathensil.com

Frequently asked questions about New Athens

Is New Athens tap water safe to drink?

EPA monitoring detected 14 contaminants in New Athens's water. A detection isn't the same as a violation — most levels are within federal limits. See each level and source above, and the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report for its official compliance status.

What contaminants were detected in New Athens's water?

EPA monitoring detected Bromodichloromethane, Chloroform, TTHM, Dibromochloromethane, Dichloroacetic Acid, and others. The full list with the level and data source for each is above.

How many people does New Athens serve?

New Athens reports serving 1,970 people in Illinois, per its EPA record.

Has New Athens had any water quality violations?

The EPA has 42 violations on file for New Athens, of which 5 are health-based (a contaminant limit or required treatment was breached) and 0 remain open. The rest are monitoring or reporting failures.

Where does this data come from?

Every figure is official EPA drinking-water monitoring — the Lead & Copper Rule, the UCMR-5 nationwide testing program, and the EPA Six-Year Review — not our own testing. Each number is labelled with its source and period.