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County water report

Marshall County Water Report

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

Water grade

B

Water score

67.5

State rank

#40

of 67

Health violations

3

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

42.9%

35 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

63

26,213 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

Primary USGS station not mapped

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Marshall County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

B

Score: 67.5 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

3

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

43% impaired

35 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

Primary USGS gauge not mapped

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

63

26,213 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

B

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

67.5/100

Health violations

3

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

2.2

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Marshall County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Marshall County earns a B grade for drinking water quality, scoring 67.5 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 3 health-based violations — a small cluster that warrants attention.

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 42.9% of assessed waterways are impaired (15 of 35 water bodies) across Marshall County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are biochemical oxygen demand (bod) and sedimentation/siltation. 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. Marshall County has extensive coverage with 63 active monitoring sites with 26,213 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and inorganics, minor, metals. 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 Marshall County

Water Verdict

Marshall County, Alabama receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of B and a score of 67.5 out of 100. The water supply meets baseline federal standards, but there may be periods of elevated contaminant levels or infrastructure concerns worth monitoring. Separately, EPA ATTAINS assessments cover 35 water bodies in the county's watershed, with 42.9% listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act — a source-water measure that is tracked independently of tap-water compliance.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Marshall County, Alabama show 3 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 2.2 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is relatively low compared to many U.S. counties. This compliance record sits alongside an unusually deep monitoring archive: 26,213 water-quality results have been logged across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Marshall County scores well above average for drinking-water safety. Marshall County's drinking-water compliance score is 67.5 out of 100. With 3 recorded health violations, the water supply is generally reliable. The violation rate for Marshall County is 2.2 per 100,000 people served. Households with infants, pregnant individuals, or immunocompromised members may want to use an NSF 53-certified pitcher filter as a low-cost precaution. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (Bod) is the leading impairment cause in Marshall County's watershed. With 63 active water-quality monitoring sites in Marshall County, data coverage is strong.

Regional Context

Marshall County has water quality close to the average county in Alabama. Its water score is within 1.3 points of the state average, meaning its overall water system performance is broadly representative of Alabama as a whole.

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 Marshall County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Biochemical Oxygen Demand (Bod)

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

  • 2

    Sedimentation and siltation

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

  • 3

    Nutrient pollution

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Marshall County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Marshall County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Marshall County

Consumer Confidence Reports (AL)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Alabama

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

42.9%

15 of 35 assessed

Moderate concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD)

  • 2

    SEDIMENTATION/SILTATION

  • 3

    NUTRIENTS

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

63

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

26K

26,213 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Inorganics, Minor, Metals
  • Organics, Other

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

3

3 people  ·  ~225 gal/day

Annual Total

$558

Monthly

$47

Water Bill

$558/yr

Filter Cost

$0/yr

Safety Grade for Marshall 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 Marshall County, Alabama?
Marshall County, Alabama has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 67.5/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 3 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 Marshall County?
Marshall County has 3 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 Marshall County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 42.9% of Marshall County's 35 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (15 impaired). The top reported causes are BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD), SEDIMENTATION/SILTATION, NUTRIENTS. 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 Marshall County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 26,213 measurements from 63 monitoring sites in Marshall County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Inorganics, Minor, Metals, Organics, Other. 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 Marshall County water compare to the Alabama average?
Marshall County's SDWIS water quality score of 67.5/100 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 Marshall County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Marshall County has a water quality grade of B (67.5/100). This indicates good to excellent water quality with strong SDWIS compliance. 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 Marshall County have clean drinking water?
Marshall County has 3 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 67.5/100 and grade B, 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 Marshall County rank for water quality in Alabama?
Marshall County ranks #40 out of 67 counties in Alabama by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 67.5/100, it falls in the middle 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

Tuscaloosa County

Alabama

B

67.5

Water score

Calhoun County

Alabama

B

67.8

Water score

Etowah County

Alabama

B

67.1

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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