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County water report

Camden County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Camden County, Georgia.

Water grade

D

Water score

43.8

State rank

#118

of 159

Health violations

14

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

16.3%

49 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

15

10,087 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

SATILLA RIVER AT US 17, AT WOODBINE, GA

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Camden County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 43.8 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

14

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

16% impaired

49 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

SATILLA RIVER AT US 17, AT WOODBINE, GA

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

15

10,087 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.

43.8/100

Health violations

14

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

25.6

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Camden County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Camden County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 43.8 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 14 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 notable 16.3% of assessed waterways carry an impairment designation (8 of 49 water bodies) across Camden 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.

Monitoring Network

EPA WQP

EPA's Water Quality Portal (WQP) aggregates monitoring data from federal, state, and tribal agencies. Camden County has moderate coverage with 15 active monitoring sites with 10,087 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 Camden County

Water Verdict

Camden County receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 43.8 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking.

Violation Context

Camden County has recorded 14 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 25.6 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Camden County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Camden County's drinking-water compliance score is 43.8 out of 100. The violation rate for Camden County is 25.6 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 Camden County's watershed. With 15 active water-quality monitoring sites in Camden County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the SATILLA RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Camden County has poorer water quality than the average county in Georgia. Its water score is 20.6 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 Camden 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

    Fecal coliform bacteria

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Camden County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Camden County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Camden County

Consumer Confidence Reports (GA)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Georgia

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

16.3%

8 of 49 assessed

Some impairment

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE

  • 2

    DISSOLVED OXYGEN

  • 3

    FECAL COLIFORM

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

15

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

10K

10,087 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

21.6Kcfs

May 14, 7:00 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

Long-term average not yet available.

Primary Streamgage

SATILLA RIVER AT US 17, AT WOODBINE, GA

USGS site
02228070
Drainage area
3,240 sq mi

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

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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 Camden 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 Camden County, Georgia?
Camden County, Georgia has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 43.8/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 14 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 Camden County?
Camden County has 14 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 Camden County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 16.3% of Camden County's 49 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (8 impaired). The top reported causes are MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE, DISSOLVED OXYGEN, FECAL COLIFORM. 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 Camden County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 10,087 measurements from 15 monitoring sites in Camden 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 Camden County right now?
Camden County's primary USGS streamgage on the SATILLA RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 21,600 cubic feet per second. Flow is within typical range for this gauge. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Camden County water compare to the Georgia average?
Camden County's SDWIS water quality score of 43.8/100 is lower than the Georgia state average of 64.4. The average water quality grade across Georgia is C, based on data from 159 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Camden County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Camden County has a water quality grade of D (43.8/100). 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).
Why does Camden County have so many water violations?
Camden County has 14 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 Camden County rank for water quality in Georgia?
Camden County ranks #118 out of 159 counties in Georgia by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 43.8/100, 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

Long County

Georgia

D

44.9

Water score

Haralson County

Georgia

D

42.5

Water score

Pierce County

Georgia

D

41.8

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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