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County water report

Osage County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Osage County, Missouri.

Water grade

D

Water score

44.0

State rank

#59

of 115

Health violations

2

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

Not reported

EPA ATTAINS coverage varies by state

Monitoring sites

1

27 recent measurements

Live streamflow

57%

Gasconade River near Rich Fountain, MO

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Osage County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 44.0 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

2

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

Not reported

Coverage varies by state

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

57% of mean

Gasconade River near Rich Fountain, MO

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

1

27 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.

44.0/100

Health violations

2

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

25.3

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Osage County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Osage County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 44.0 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 2 health-based violations — a small cluster that warrants attention.

River & Streamflow Status

USGS NWIS

USGS NWIS gauge data (as of 2026-05-14T13:30:00.000-05:00) puts Gasconade River at 1.8k cfs — well below its long-term average at 57% 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. Osage County has limited coverage with 1 active monitoring site with 27 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and cyanotoxins, phytotoxins. 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 Osage County

Water Verdict

Osage County, Missouri receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 44.0 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking. The county's primary USGS gauge drains roughly 3,180 square miles of upstream watershed, giving local source waters a regional footprint. At the most recent USGS reading, local streamflow was below its historical mean at 57.0% — worth watching in drier seasons.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Osage County, Missouri show 2 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 25.3 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues. Independent monitoring is comparatively sparse here — 27 water-quality results logged in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years — so the utility's own reporting carries extra weight.

Consumer Guidance

Osage County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Osage County's drinking-water compliance score is 44.0 out of 100. The violation rate for Osage County is 25.3 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 is 1 active water-quality monitoring site in Osage County. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the Gasconade River gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Osage County has water quality close to the average county in Missouri. Its water score is within 4.8 points of the state average, meaning its overall water system performance is broadly representative of Missouri as a whole.

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 Osage County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Osage County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Osage County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Osage County

Consumer Confidence Reports (MO)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Missouri

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

1

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

27

27 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Cyanotoxins, Phytotoxins
  • Inorganics, Minor, Metals

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

1,800cfs

May 14, 6:30 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

57%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

Gasconade River near Rich Fountain, MO

USGS site
06934000
Drainage area
3,180 sq mi
Long-term mean
3,159 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 Osage 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.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Osage County, Missouri?
Osage County, Missouri has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 44.0/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 2 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 Osage County?
Osage County has 2 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 Osage County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 27 measurements from 1 monitoring sites in Osage County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Cyanotoxins, Phytotoxins, Inorganics, Minor, Metals. 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 Osage County right now?
Osage County's primary USGS streamgage on the Gasconade River has a pipeline snapshot of 1,800 cubic feet per second — 57% of the long-term mean of 3,159.15 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 Osage County water compare to the Missouri average?
Osage County's SDWIS water quality score of 44.0/100 is lower than the Missouri state average of 48.8. The average water quality grade across Missouri is D, based on data from 115 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Osage County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Osage County has a water quality grade of D (44.0/100). 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).
Does Osage County have clean drinking water?
Osage County has 2 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 44.0/100 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 Osage County rank for water quality in Missouri?
Osage County ranks #59 out of 115 counties in Missouri by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 44.0/100, 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.

Counties with Similar Water Quality

Howell County

Missouri

D

43.8

Water score

Daviess County

Missouri

D

44.7

Water score

Ripley County

Missouri

D

45.0

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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