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Federal water data

County water report

Dixie County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Dixie County, Florida.

Water grade

D

Water score

47.1

State rank

#47

of 66

Health violations

1

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

41.2%

245 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

47

14,162 recent measurements

Live streamflow

78%

SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER NR SUWANNEE FL

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Dixie County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 47.1 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

1

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

41% impaired

245 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

78% of mean

SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER NR SUWANNEE FL

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

47

14,162 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

D

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

47.1/100

Health violations

1

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

20.6

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Dixie County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Dixie County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 47.1 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 1 health-based violation — a single incident worth monitoring.

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 41.2% of assessed waterways are impaired (101 of 245 water bodies) across Dixie County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are mercury in fish tissue and dissolved oxygen. Impairment does not mean tap water is unsafe — it measures ambient waterway conditions upstream of treatment, not finished drinking water.

River & Streamflow Status

USGS NWIS

USGS NWIS gauge data (as of 2026-05-14T14:45:00.000-04:00) puts SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER at 5.7k cfs — running somewhat below its historical average at 78% of mean. Streamflow is a leading indicator of drought stress, sediment load, and dilution capacity: low flows concentrate pollutants and warm water temperatures, stressing aquatic life and, in surface-water-dependent systems, the source water quality for treatment plants.

Monitoring Network

EPA WQP

EPA's Water Quality Portal (WQP) aggregates monitoring data from federal, state, and tribal agencies. Dixie County has moderate coverage with 47 active monitoring sites with 14,162 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 Dixie County

Water Verdict

Dixie County receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 47.1 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking.

Violation Context

Dixie County has recorded 1 health-based violation, meaning the water system experienced at least one exceedance of federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements. At 20.6 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Dixie County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Dixie County's drinking-water compliance score is 47.1 out of 100. The violation rate for Dixie County is 20.6 per 100,000 people served. Residents are encouraged to use an NSF 53 or NSF 58-certified filter for drinking and cooking water until the underlying violations are resolved. Running tap water for 30 seconds before use and avoiding older lead-pipe connections can also reduce exposure risk. The current Consumer Confidence Report from your utility will specify the contaminants of concern. Mercury in Fish Tissue is the leading impairment cause in Dixie County's watershed. With 47 active water-quality monitoring sites in Dixie County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Dixie County has poorer water quality than the average county in Florida. Its water score is 8.9 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 Dixie County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Mercury (fish tissue)

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

  • 2

    Low dissolved oxygen

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

  • 3

    Nitrate/Nitrite (Nitrite + Nitrate As N)

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Dixie County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Dixie County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Dixie County

Consumer Confidence Reports (FL)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Florida

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

41.2%

101 of 245 assessed

Moderate concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE

  • 2

    DISSOLVED OXYGEN

  • 3

    NITRATE/NITRITE (NITRITE + NITRATE AS N)

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

47

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

14K

14,162 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Inorganics, Minor, Metals
  • Nutrient

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

5,650cfs

May 14, 6:45 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

78%

Below typical

Primary Streamgage

SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER NR SUWANNEE FL

USGS site
02323592
Drainage area
9,973 sq mi
Long-term mean
7,281 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; the percent-of-typical value compares the latest reading against that average.

Free tool

Estimate Your Water Costs

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 Dixie 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 Dixie County, Florida?
Dixie County, Florida has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 47.1/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 1 health-based drinking water violation over the past 5 years. Watershed health, monitoring records, and streamflow snapshots are reported separately on this page.
Are there any water violations in Dixie County?
Dixie County has 1 health-based drinking water violation 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 Dixie County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 41.2% of Dixie County's 245 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (101 impaired). The top reported causes are MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE, DISSOLVED OXYGEN, NITRATE/NITRITE (NITRITE + NITRATE AS N). 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 Dixie County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 14,162 measurements from 47 monitoring sites in Dixie County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Inorganics, Minor, Metals, Nutrient. 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 Dixie County right now?
Dixie County's primary USGS streamgage on the SUWANNEE RIVER AB GOPHER RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 5,650 cubic feet per second — 78% of the long-term mean of 7,281 cfs. Flow is within typical range for this gauge. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Dixie County water compare to the Florida average?
Dixie County's SDWIS water quality score of 47.1/100 is lower than the Florida state average of 56.0. The average water quality grade across Florida is D, based on data from 66 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Dixie County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Dixie County has a water quality grade of D (47.1/100). This indicates below-average compliance with significant violations. Residents may want to consider home water filtration or independent testing. 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 Dixie County have clean drinking water?
Dixie County has 1 health-based drinking water violation according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 47.1/100 and grade D, 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 Dixie County rank for water quality in Florida?
Dixie County ranks #47 out of 66 counties in Florida by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 47.1/100, 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

Jackson County

Florida

D

46.6

Water score

Flagler County

Florida

D

46.2

Water score

Charlotte County

Florida

D

48.8

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.

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

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