Houghton County Water Quality

Houghton County, Michigan has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 65.3/100, 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 live streamflow are reported separately on this page.

Houghton 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.

EPA's Water Quality Portal records 2,958 measurements from 31 monitoring sites in Houghton County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Microbiological, PFAS,Perfluorinated Alkyl Substance. 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.

Houghton County's SDWIS water quality score of 65.3/100 is higher than the Michigan state average of 58.5. The average water quality grade across Michigan is D, based on data from 83 counties with available SDWIS data.

Based on EPA SDWIS data, Houghton County has a water quality grade of B (65.3/100). 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).

Houghton County has 1 health-based drinking water violation according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 65.3/100 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.

Houghton County ranks #34 out of 83 counties in Michigan by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 65.3/100, 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.