waterbycounty
Federal water data

County water report

Panola County Water Report

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

Water grade

D

Water score

44.1

State rank

#56

of 82

Health violations

8

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

Not reported

EPA ATTAINS coverage varies by state

Monitoring sites

7

1,550 recent measurements

Live streamflow

13%

PETERS (LONG) CREEK NR POPE, MS

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Panola County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 44.1 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

8

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

Not reported

Coverage varies by state

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

13% of mean

PETERS (LONG) CREEK NR POPE, MS

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

7

1,550 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.

44.1/100

Health violations

8

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

25.1

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Panola County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Panola County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 44.1 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 8 health-based violations — a pattern that public water utilities are required to disclose and correct.

River & Streamflow Status

USGS NWIS

USGS NWIS gauge data (as of 2001-08-20T23:45:00.000-05:00) puts PETERS (LONG) CREEK at 15.0 cfs — well below its long-term average at 13% of mean — low-flow conditions worth noting for water-dependent ecosystems. 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. Panola County has limited coverage with 7 active monitoring sites with 1,550 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and organics, other. 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 Panola County

Water Verdict

Panola County receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 44.1 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking.

Violation Context

Panola County has recorded 8 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 25.1 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Panola County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Panola County's drinking-water compliance score is 44.1 out of 100. The violation rate for Panola County is 25.1 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. There are 7 active water-quality monitoring sites in Panola County. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the PETERS (LONG) CREEK gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Panola County has poorer water quality than the average county in Mississippi. Its water score is 7.6 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 Panola County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Panola County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Panola County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Panola County

Consumer Confidence Reports (MS)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Mississippi

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

7

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

1.6K

1,550 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Organics, Other
  • 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).

Live USGS Streamgage

River & Stream Conditions

Current Discharge

15.0cfs

Aug 21, 4:45 AM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

13%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

PETERS (LONG) CREEK NR POPE, MS

USGS site
07275530
Drainage area
79.2 sq mi
Long-term mean
114 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 Panola County:D — Poor

Elevated violations or significant watershed impairment.

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.

Try the full calculator →

Improve your water quality at home

Berkey filters remove 99.9%+ of contaminants from tap water.

Shop Berkey →

Sponsored

Test your tap water

Tap Score provides professional mail-in water testing.

Get Tested →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Panola County, Mississippi?
Panola County, Mississippi has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 44.1/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 8 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 Panola County?
Panola County has 8 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 Panola County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 1,550 measurements from 7 monitoring sites in Panola County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Organics, Other, 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.
What's happening with rivers in Panola County right now?
Panola County's primary USGS streamgage on the PETERS (LONG) CREEK has a pipeline snapshot of 15 cubic feet per second — 13% of the long-term mean of 114.29 cfs. This is well below typical — often a signal of drought stress on source water. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Panola County water compare to the Mississippi average?
Panola County's SDWIS water quality score of 44.1/100 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 Panola County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Panola County has a water quality grade of D (44.1/100). 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 Panola County have so many water violations?
Panola County has 8 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 Panola County rank for water quality in Mississippi?
Panola County ranks #56 out of 82 counties in Mississippi by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 44.1/100, 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

Claiborne County

Mississippi

D

44.2

Water score

Pontotoc County

Mississippi

D

44.6

Water score

Washington County

Mississippi

D

42.4

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

Explore more data for Panola County

Property TaxCost of LivingCrime RateIncomeHealthSchoolsDisaster RiskWeatherCounty Score