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County water report

Hancock County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Hancock County, Mississippi.

Water grade

F

Water score

36.0

State rank

#64

of 82

Health violations

23

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

Not reported

EPA ATTAINS coverage varies by state

Monitoring sites

39

17,008 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

EAST PEARL RIVER AT CSX RAILROAD NR CLAIBORNE, MS

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Hancock County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

F

Score: 36.0 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

23

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

Not reported

Coverage varies by state

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

EAST PEARL RIVER AT CSX RAILROAD NR CLAIBORNE, MS

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

39

17,008 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

F

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

36.0/100

Health violations

23

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

43.3

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Hancock County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Hancock County's water systems carry a failing grade, scoring 36.0 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 23 health-based violations — a pattern that public water utilities are required to disclose and correct.

Monitoring Network

EPA WQP

EPA's Water Quality Portal (WQP) aggregates monitoring data from federal, state, and tribal agencies. Hancock County has moderate coverage with 39 active monitoring sites with 17,008 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 Hancock County

Water Verdict

Hancock County, Mississippi receives a poor water quality assessment with a grade of F and a score of 36.0 out of 100. The water supply has documented quality issues. Residents are strongly encouraged to use filtered or bottled water for drinking and to stay informed about utility improvement plans. The county's primary USGS gauge drains roughly 8,674 square miles of upstream watershed, giving local source waters a regional footprint.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Hancock County, Mississippi show 23 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 43.3 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues. This compliance record sits alongside an unusually deep monitoring archive: 17,008 water-quality results have been logged across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

Drinking-water compliance in Hancock County is rated Grade F, reflecting significant health-based violations in the recent reporting period. Hancock County's drinking-water compliance score is 36.0 out of 100. The violation rate for Hancock County is 43.3 per 100,000 people served. An NSF 53 or NSF 58-certified filter is recommended for drinking and cooking water. Check the Consumer Confidence Report from your utility to identify the specific contaminants and required corrective actions — utilities are legally required to notify customers of violations. With 39 active water-quality monitoring sites in Hancock County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the EAST PEARL RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Hancock County has poorer water quality than the average county in Mississippi. Its water score is 15.7 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 Hancock County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Hancock County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Hancock County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Hancock County

Consumer Confidence Reports (MS)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Mississippi

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

39

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

17K

17,008 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Nutrient
  • Microbiological

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

10.8Kcfs

Oct 1, 4:45 AM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

Long-term average not yet available.

Primary Streamgage

EAST PEARL RIVER AT CSX RAILROAD NR CLAIBORNE, MS

USGS site
301141089320300
Drainage area
8,674 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 Hancock County:F — Failing

High violation count or severe watershed conditions.

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 Hancock County, Mississippi?
Hancock County, Mississippi has a drinking-water quality grade of F with a score of 36.0/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 23 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 Hancock County?
Hancock County has 23 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 much water-quality monitoring happens in Hancock County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 17,008 measurements from 39 monitoring sites in Hancock County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Nutrient, Microbiological. 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 Hancock County right now?
Hancock County's primary USGS streamgage on the EAST PEARL RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 10,800 cubic feet per second. Flow is within typical range for this gauge. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Hancock County water compare to the Mississippi average?
Hancock County's SDWIS water quality score of 36.0/100 is lower than the Mississippi state average of 51.7. The average water quality grade across Mississippi is D, based on data from 82 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Hancock County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Hancock County has a water quality grade of F (36.0/100). 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 Hancock County have so many water violations?
Hancock County has 23 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 Hancock County rank for water quality in Mississippi?
Hancock County ranks #64 out of 82 counties in Mississippi by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 36.0/100, 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

Rankin County

Mississippi

F

36.1

Water score

Calhoun County

Mississippi

F

37.8

Water score

Noxubee County

Mississippi

F

33.1

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.

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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