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County water report

Barbour County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Barbour County, Alabama.

Water grade

C

Water score

54.1

State rank

#56

of 67

Health violations

4

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

30.6%

36 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

20

6,751 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

SOUTH FORK COWIKEE CREEK NEAR BATESVILLE AL

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Barbour County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

C

Score: 54.1 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

4

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

31% impaired

36 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

SOUTH FORK COWIKEE CREEK NEAR BATESVILLE AL

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

20

6,751 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

C

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

54.1/100

Health violations

4

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

11.1

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Barbour County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Barbour County's drinking water earned a C grade, scoring 54.1 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 4 health-based violations — a pattern that public water utilities are required to disclose and correct.

Watershed Conditions

EPA ATTAINS

Under the Clean Water Act §303(d), EPA ATTAINS tracks whether waterways meet quality standards for drinking, recreation, and aquatic life (reporting cycle: 2022). A substantial 30.6% of assessed waterways are impaired (11 of 36 water bodies) across Barbour County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are escherichia coli (e. coli) and mercury. Impairment does not mean tap water is unsafe — it measures ambient waterway conditions upstream of treatment, not finished drinking water.

Monitoring Network

EPA WQP

EPA's Water Quality Portal (WQP) aggregates monitoring data from federal, state, and tribal agencies. Barbour County has moderate coverage with 20 active monitoring sites with 6,751 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and nutrient. More monitoring sites generally indicate greater scientific attention to local water conditions — and provide the baseline data that regulators use to set future impairment listings.

Editorial advisory

What the data suggests for Barbour County

Water Verdict

Barbour County receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of C and a score of 54.1 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking.

Violation Context

Barbour County has recorded 4 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 11.1 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Barbour County meets baseline standards but the compliance record shows room for improvement, with a Grade C rating. Barbour County's drinking-water compliance score is 54.1 out of 100. The violation rate for Barbour County is 11.1 per 100,000 people served. Residents who are immunocompromised, pregnant, or have young children may benefit from using an NSF 53-certified filter. Contacting your local utility for the current Consumer Confidence Report will confirm which specific violations were recorded and whether they have been resolved. E. coli is the leading impairment cause in Barbour County's watershed. With 20 active water-quality monitoring sites in Barbour County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the SOUTH FORK COWIKEE CREEK gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Barbour County has poorer water quality than the average county in Alabama. Its water score is 14.7 points lower than the state average, suggesting more challenges with contamination control or infrastructure than neighboring counties.

Advisory text summarizes county-level public records and is not a replacement for your utility's current Consumer Confidence Report or direct local notices.

Contaminants & Resources

Key issues flagged in Barbour County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    E. coli (bacteria)

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 2

    Mercury

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 3

    Sedimentation and siltation

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Barbour County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Barbour County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Barbour County

Consumer Confidence Reports (AL)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Alabama

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

30.6%

11 of 36 assessed

Moderate concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    MERCURY

  • 3

    SEDIMENTATION/SILTATION

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Impairment is determined under the Clean Water Act §303(d): a water body is impaired when it fails to meet state-defined quality standards for designated uses (drinking, recreation, aquatic life). Assessment coverage varies by state; counties without assessed water bodies are not shown.

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

20

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

6.8K

6,751 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Nutrient
  • Inorganics, Minor, Metals

Categories measured most frequently

Data from the EPA Water Quality Portal (WQP), aggregating monitoring records from federal, state, and tribal sources. Each measurement represents a single sample analyzed for a specific characteristic (e.g., E. coli, pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrogen).

Free tool

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Water Cost Estimate

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3 people  ·  ~225 gal/day

Annual Total

$558

Monthly

$47

Water Bill

$558/yr

Filter Cost

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Safety Grade for Barbour County:C — Moderate

Some violations or watershed impairment detected.

Estimates use the national average residential water rate ($0.0068/gal, EPA/AWWA 2023) and EPA WaterSense per-person consumption baseline (75 gal/person/day). Actual bills vary by utility, usage tier, and local infrastructure fees. For informational purposes only.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Barbour County, Alabama?
Barbour County, Alabama has a drinking-water quality grade of C with a score of 54.1/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 4 health-based drinking water violations over the past 5 years. Watershed health, monitoring records, and streamflow snapshots are reported separately on this page.
Are there any water violations in Barbour County?
Barbour County has 4 health-based drinking water violations recorded by the EPA over the past 5 years. Health-based violations indicate instances where contaminant levels exceeded EPA Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs). Violations may have been resolved — check with your local water utility for current status.
How healthy are the watersheds in Barbour County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 30.6% of Barbour County's 36 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (11 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), MERCURY, SEDIMENTATION/SILTATION. Impairment means the water body fails to meet state quality standards for at least one designated use — drinking water source, recreation, aquatic life, or fish consumption. Note: watershed impairment doesn't always translate to tap-water issues; treatment plants can remove most regulated contaminants.
How much water-quality monitoring happens in Barbour County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 6,751 measurements from 20 monitoring sites in Barbour County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Nutrient, Inorganics, Minor, Metals. Each measurement is a single sample analyzed for one characteristic (E. coli, pH, dissolved oxygen, etc.). High monitoring density means more scientific evidence behind any reported signal — it does not by itself indicate water quality.
How does Barbour County water compare to the Alabama average?
Barbour County's SDWIS water quality score of 54.1/100 is lower than the Alabama state average of 68.8. The average water quality grade across Alabama is C, based on data from 67 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Barbour County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Barbour County has a water quality grade of C (54.1/100). This indicates moderate compliance. Some violations have been recorded but overall standards are maintained. The grade speaks to the public water system, not the watershed — for watershed-level concerns, see the Watershed Health zone. For the most up-to-date information, contact your local water utility or review your Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).
Does Barbour County have clean drinking water?
Barbour County has 4 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 54.1/100 and grade C, the county's drinking water has had some compliance issues but continues to be monitored. Note: drinking-water compliance speaks to the public water system, not necessarily to the watershed itself — check the Watershed Health zone for ATTAINS §303(d) data.
How does Barbour County rank for water quality in Alabama?
Barbour County ranks #56 out of 67 counties in Alabama by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 54.1/100, it falls in the bottom third of counties statewide. The ranking reflects EPA SDWIS compliance only — not watershed impairment, monitoring density, or streamflow, which are tracked separately on this page.

Counties with Similar Water Quality

Colbert County

Alabama

C

54.3

Water score

Monroe County

Alabama

C

54.8

Water score

Walker County

Alabama

C

56.4

Water score

Data Sources

Drinking-water compliance data from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) via the ECHO enforcement database. Scores reflect compliance history and health-based violation counts.

Watershed health and impaired-waterway data from the EPA ATTAINS Clean Water Act §303(d) assessments, state-reported and EPA-finalized.

Water-quality monitoring counts from the EPA Water Quality Portal (WQP), federated USGS, EPA, and state agency sampling records over a rolling 5-year window.

Disclaimer: This data is informational only. It is not health, legal, or professional advice. For concerns about your specific water supply, contact your local water utility.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

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