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County water report

Dearborn County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Dearborn County, Indiana.

Water grade

C

Water score

57.5

State rank

#37

of 92

Health violations

4

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

27.5%

160 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

10

4,320 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

Primary USGS station not mapped

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Dearborn County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

C

Score: 57.5 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

4

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

28% impaired

160 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

Primary USGS gauge not mapped

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

10

4,320 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.

57.5/100

Health violations

4

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

8.5

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Dearborn County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Dearborn County's drinking water earned a C grade, scoring 57.5 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 notable 27.5% of assessed waterways carry an impairment designation (44 of 160 water bodies) across Dearborn County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are escherichia coli (e. coli) and biological integrity. 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. Dearborn County has moderate coverage with 10 active monitoring sites with 4,320 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 Dearborn County

Water Verdict

Dearborn County receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of C and a score of 57.5 out of 100. The water supply meets baseline federal standards, but there may be periods of elevated contaminant levels or infrastructure concerns worth monitoring.

Violation Context

Dearborn County has recorded 4 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 8.5 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Dearborn County meets baseline standards but the compliance record shows room for improvement, with a Grade C rating. Dearborn County's drinking-water compliance score is 57.5 out of 100. The violation rate for Dearborn County is 8.5 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 Dearborn County's watershed. There are 10 active water-quality monitoring sites in Dearborn County.

Regional Context

Dearborn County has better water quality than the average county in Indiana. Its water score is 5 points higher than the state average, indicating stronger water system performance relative to 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 Dearborn County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    E. coli (bacteria)

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

  • 2

    Biological Integrity

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

  • 3

    Pcbs in Fish Tissue

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Dearborn County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Dearborn County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Dearborn County

Consumer Confidence Reports (IN)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Indiana

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

27.5%

44 of 160 assessed

Some impairment

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY

  • 3

    PCBS IN FISH TISSUE

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

10

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

4.3K

4,320 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).

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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 Dearborn 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 Dearborn County, Indiana?
Dearborn County, Indiana has a drinking-water quality grade of C with a score of 57.5/100, 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 Dearborn County?
Dearborn 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 Dearborn County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 27.5% of Dearborn County's 160 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (44 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY, PCBS IN FISH TISSUE. 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 Dearborn County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 4,320 measurements from 10 monitoring sites in Dearborn 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.
How does Dearborn County water compare to the Indiana average?
Dearborn County's SDWIS water quality score of 57.5/100 is higher than the Indiana state average of 52.5. The average water quality grade across Indiana is D, based on data from 92 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Dearborn County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Dearborn County has a water quality grade of C (57.5/100). 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 Dearborn County have clean drinking water?
Dearborn County has 4 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 57.5/100 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 Dearborn County rank for water quality in Indiana?
Dearborn County ranks #37 out of 92 counties in Indiana by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 57.5/100, 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

Marshall County

Indiana

C

57.1

Water score

Grant County

Indiana

C

56.8

Water score

Putnam County

Indiana

C

58.3

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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