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County water report

Freeborn County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Freeborn County, Minnesota.

Water grade

D

Water score

46.4

State rank

#69

of 87

Health violations

5

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

0.0%

1 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

17

4,810 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

Primary USGS station not mapped

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Freeborn County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 46.4 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

5

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

0% impaired

1 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

Primary USGS gauge not mapped

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

17

4,810 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.

46.4/100

Health violations

5

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

21.7

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Freeborn County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Freeborn County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 46.4 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 5 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). None of the assessed waterways are listed as impaired (0 of 1 water bodies) across Freeborn County's watersheds. 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. Freeborn County has moderate coverage with 17 active monitoring sites with 4,810 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 Freeborn County

Water Verdict

Freeborn County, Minnesota receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 46.4 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking. Separately, EPA ATTAINS assessments track 1 water body in the county's watershed, none of which are currently listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Freeborn County, Minnesota show 5 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 21.7 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues. For independent context, 4,810 water-quality monitoring results have been recorded across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

Freeborn County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Freeborn County's drinking-water compliance score is 46.4 out of 100. The violation rate for Freeborn County is 21.7 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. With 17 active water-quality monitoring sites in Freeborn County, data coverage is strong.

Regional Context

Freeborn County has poorer water quality than the average county in Minnesota. Its water score is 20.8 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 Freeborn County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Freeborn County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Freeborn County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Freeborn County

Consumer Confidence Reports (MN)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Minnesota

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

0.0%

0 of 1 assessed

Mostly healthy

Top Impairment Causes

No specific impairment causes reported for the assessed water bodies in this county.

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

17

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

4.8K

4,810 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Organics, Pesticide
  • 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 Freeborn 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 Freeborn County, Minnesota?
Freeborn County, Minnesota has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 46.4/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 5 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 Freeborn County?
Freeborn County has 5 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 Freeborn County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 0.0% of Freeborn County's 1 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (0 impaired). 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 Freeborn County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 4,810 measurements from 17 monitoring sites in Freeborn County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Organics, Pesticide, 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 Freeborn County water compare to the Minnesota average?
Freeborn County's SDWIS water quality score of 46.4/100 is lower than the Minnesota state average of 67.2. The average water quality grade across Minnesota is C, based on data from 87 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Freeborn County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Freeborn County has a water quality grade of D (46.4/100). 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 Freeborn County have clean drinking water?
Freeborn County has 5 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 46.4/100 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 Freeborn County rank for water quality in Minnesota?
Freeborn County ranks #69 out of 87 counties in Minnesota by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 46.4/100, 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

Nicollet County

Minnesota

D

44.6

Water score

Chisago County

Minnesota

D

49.0

Water score

Morrison County

Minnesota

D

42.6

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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