waterbycounty
EPA SDWIS

El Paso County Water Quality

El Paso County, Colorado

Water Grade

C

Water Score

51.3

Violations

107

State Rank

#22

of 64 (1 = best)

EPA SDWIS Compliance

Drinking Water Quality

Water Quality Grade

C

Based on EPA compliance history and violation data

Water Score

51.3/100

Higher = better quality

Health Violations

107

Health-based violations

Violation Rate

14.4%

Systems with violations

Water Advisory: El Paso County

Water Verdict

El Paso County receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of C and a score of 51.3 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking.

Violation Context

El Paso County has recorded 107 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 14.4 violations per 1,000 residents, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in El Paso County meets baseline standards, but residents who are immunocompromised or have young children may want to use an NSF-certified water filter as a precaution. With 107 recorded health violations, staying informed about utility communications and boil-water notices is especially important. For long-term peace of mind, request your utility's latest Consumer Confidence Report and consider independent water testing if you have specific health concerns.

Regional Context

El Paso County has better water quality than the average county in Colorado. Its water score is 12.6 points higher than the state average, indicating stronger water system performance relative to neighboring counties.

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

36.3%

105 of 289 assessed

Moderate concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    ARSENIC

  • 3

    SELENIUM

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

210

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

119K

119,383 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).

Live USGS Streamgage

River & Stream Conditions

Current Discharge

77.3cfs

May 14, 7:00 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

59%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

FOUNTAIN CREEK NEAR FOUNTAIN, CO.

USGS site
07106000
Drainage area
672 sq mi
Long-term mean
132 cfs

One representative streamgage (the one with the largest drainage area in the county). Many counties have multiple gauges — this view summarizes the primary one. The long-term mean is the full-record annual average; "% of typical" compares the latest reading against that average.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in El Paso County, Colorado?
El Paso County, Colorado has a drinking-water quality grade of C with a score of 51.3/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 107 health-based drinking water violations over the past 5 years. Watershed health, monitoring records, and live streamflow are reported separately on this page.
Are there any water violations in El Paso County?
El Paso County has 107 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 El Paso County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 36.3% of El Paso County's 289 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (105 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), ARSENIC, SELENIUM. 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 El Paso County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 119,383 measurements from 210 monitoring sites in El Paso 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.
What's happening with rivers in El Paso County right now?
El Paso County's primary USGS streamgage on the FOUNTAIN CREEK is currently reading 77.3 cubic feet per second — 59% of the long-term mean of 131.77 cfs. This is well below typical — often a signal of drought stress on source water. For genuine real-time data, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does El Paso County water compare to the Colorado average?
El Paso County's SDWIS water quality score of 51.3/100 is higher than the Colorado state average of 38.7. The average water quality grade across Colorado is F, based on data from 64 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in El Paso County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, El Paso County has a water quality grade of C (51.3/100). 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).
Why does El Paso County have so many water violations?
El Paso County has 107 health-based drinking water violations on record from the EPA SDWIS database. A higher violation count can result from aging infrastructure, underfunded water utilities, agricultural runoff contamination, or industrial pollution. Counties with more water systems may also see more violations simply due to scale. Residents concerned about water quality should consider independent water testing and home filtration systems.
How does El Paso County rank for water quality in Colorado?
El Paso County ranks #22 out of 64 counties in Colorado by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 51.3/100, it falls in the top 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

Las Animas County

Colorado

C

51.8

Water score

Douglas County

Colorado

C

52.5

Water score

Eagle County

Colorado

D

49.9

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, 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.

Live streamflow from the USGS National Water Information System (NWIS) — continuous discharge measurements from the largest-drainage gauge in each county, compared against the full-record long-term annual mean.

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 Logan Johnson, Founder & Data EditorUpdated Reviewed by Logan Johnson, Founder & Data Editor

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