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Federal water data

County water report

Jackson County Water Report

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

Water grade

B

Water score

66.8

State rank

#22

of 92

Health violations

1

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

26.4%

216 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

41

10,570 recent measurements

Live streamflow

127%

EAST FORK WHITE RIVER AT SEYMOUR, IN

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Jackson County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

B

Score: 66.8 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

1

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

26% impaired

216 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

127% of mean

EAST FORK WHITE RIVER AT SEYMOUR, IN

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

41

10,570 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.

66.8/100

Health violations

1

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

2.5

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Jackson County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Jackson County earns a B grade for drinking water quality, scoring 66.8 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 notable 26.4% of assessed waterways carry an impairment designation (57 of 216 water bodies) across Jackson County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are escherichia coli (e. coli) and pcbs in fish tissue. 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 EAST FORK WHITE RIVER at 3.5k cfs — flowing above its historical average at 127% 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. Jackson County has moderate coverage with 41 active monitoring sites with 10,570 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and organics, pesticide. 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 Jackson County

Water Verdict

Jackson County receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of B and a score of 66.8 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

Jackson County has recorded 1 health-based violation, meaning the water system experienced at least one exceedance of federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements. At 2.5 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is relatively low compared to many U.S. counties.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Jackson County scores well above average for drinking-water safety. Jackson County's drinking-water compliance score is 66.8 out of 100. With 1 recorded health violation, the water supply is generally reliable. The violation rate for Jackson County is 2.5 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. E. coli is the leading impairment cause in Jackson County's watershed. With 41 active water-quality monitoring sites in Jackson County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the EAST FORK WHITE RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Jackson County has better water quality than the average county in Indiana. Its water score is 14.3 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 Jackson County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    E. coli (bacteria)

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

  • 2

    Pcbs in Fish Tissue

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

  • 3

    Biological Integrity

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Jackson County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Jackson County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Jackson County

Consumer Confidence Reports (IN)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Indiana

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

26.4%

57 of 216 assessed

Some impairment

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    PCBS IN FISH TISSUE

  • 3

    BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY

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

41

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

11K

10,570 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Organics, Pesticide
  • Biological, Counts

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

3,470cfs

May 14, 6:45 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

127%

Above typical

Primary Streamgage

EAST FORK WHITE RIVER AT SEYMOUR, IN

USGS site
03365500
Drainage area
2,341 sq mi
Long-term mean
2,740 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 Jackson 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 Jackson County, Indiana?
Jackson County, Indiana has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 66.8/100, 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 Jackson County?
Jackson 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 Jackson County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 26.4% of Jackson County's 216 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (57 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), PCBS IN FISH TISSUE, BIOLOGICAL INTEGRITY. 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 Jackson County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 10,570 measurements from 41 monitoring sites in Jackson County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Organics, Pesticide, Biological, Counts. 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 Jackson County right now?
Jackson County's primary USGS streamgage on the EAST FORK WHITE RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 3,470 cubic feet per second — 127% of the long-term mean of 2,739.98 cfs. Flow is within typical range for this gauge. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Jackson County water compare to the Indiana average?
Jackson County's SDWIS water quality score of 66.8/100 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 Jackson County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Jackson County has a water quality grade of B (66.8/100). 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 Jackson County have clean drinking water?
Jackson County has 1 health-based drinking water violation according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 66.8/100 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 Jackson County rank for water quality in Indiana?
Jackson County ranks #22 out of 92 counties in Indiana by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 66.8/100, 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

Harrison County

Indiana

B

67.1

Water score

Greene County

Indiana

B

66.2

Water score

Howard County

Indiana

B

65.8

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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