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County water report

Ocean County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Ocean County, New Jersey.

Water grade

B

Water score

63.0

State rank

#7

of 21

Health violations

32

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

92.3%

13 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

833

134,420 recent measurements

Live streamflow

52%

Toms River near Toms River NJ

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Ocean County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

B

Score: 63.0 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

32

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

92% impaired

13 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

52% of mean

Toms River near Toms River NJ

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

833

134,420 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

B

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

63.0/100

Health violations

32

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

4.7

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Ocean County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Ocean County earns a B grade for drinking water quality, scoring 63.0 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 32 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). A large majority — 92.3% — of assessed waterways are impaired (12 of 13 water bodies) across Ocean County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are pcbs in fish tissue and mercury in fish tissue. Impairment does not mean tap water is unsafe — it measures ambient waterway conditions upstream of treatment, not finished drinking water.

River & Streamflow Status

USGS NWIS

USGS NWIS gauge data (as of 2026-05-14T14:00:00.000-04:00) puts Toms River at 109.0 cfs — well below its long-term average at 52% 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. Ocean County has extensive coverage with 833 active monitoring sites with 134,420 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and microbiological. 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 Ocean County

Water Verdict

Ocean County, New Jersey receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of B and a score of 63.0 out of 100. The water supply meets baseline federal standards, but there may be periods of elevated contaminant levels or infrastructure concerns worth monitoring. Separately, EPA ATTAINS assessments cover 13 water bodies in the county's watershed, with 92.3% listed as impaired under the Clean Water Act — a source-water measure that is tracked independently of tap-water compliance. At the most recent USGS reading, local streamflow was below its historical mean at 51.9% — worth watching in drier seasons.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Ocean County, New Jersey show 32 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 4.7 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is moderate and suggests recurring water quality challenges. This compliance record sits alongside an unusually deep monitoring archive: 134,420 water-quality results have been logged across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Ocean County meets baseline safety standards, though the compliance record shows some violations worth watching. Ocean County's drinking-water compliance score is 63.0 out of 100. The violation rate for Ocean County is 4.7 per 100,000 people served. Running tap water for 30 seconds before drinking can reduce any localized lead exposure from household plumbing. Requesting your utility's most recent Consumer Confidence Report is the fastest way to identify which specific contaminants were flagged. Pcbs in Fish Tissue is the leading impairment cause in Ocean County's watershed. With 833 active water-quality monitoring sites in Ocean County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the Toms River gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Ocean County has better water quality than the average county in New Jersey. Its water score is 7.3 points higher than the state average, indicating stronger water system performance relative to 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 Ocean County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Pcbs in Fish Tissue

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 2

    Mercury (fish tissue)

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 3

    Ddt in Fish Tissue

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Ocean County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Ocean County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Ocean County

Consumer Confidence Reports (NJ)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in New Jersey

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

92.3%

12 of 13 assessed

High concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    PCBS IN FISH TISSUE

  • 2

    MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE

  • 3

    DDT IN FISH TISSUE

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

833

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

134K

134,420 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Microbiological
  • 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

109cfs

May 14, 6:00 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

52%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

Toms River near Toms River NJ

USGS site
01408500
Drainage area
123 sq mi
Long-term mean
210 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.

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Water Cost Estimate

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Annual Total

$558

Monthly

$47

Water Bill

$558/yr

Filter Cost

$0/yr

Safety Grade for Ocean 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 Ocean County, New Jersey?
Ocean County, New Jersey has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 63.0/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 32 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 Ocean County?
Ocean County has 32 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 Ocean County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 92.3% of Ocean County's 13 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (12 impaired). The top reported causes are PCBS IN FISH TISSUE, MERCURY IN FISH TISSUE, DDT IN FISH TISSUE. 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 Ocean County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 134,420 measurements from 833 monitoring sites in Ocean County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Microbiological, 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 Ocean County right now?
Ocean County's primary USGS streamgage on the Toms River has a pipeline snapshot of 109 cubic feet per second — 52% of the long-term mean of 210.11 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 Ocean County water compare to the New Jersey average?
Ocean County's SDWIS water quality score of 63.0/100 is higher than the New Jersey state average of 55.7. The average water quality grade across New Jersey is D, based on data from 21 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Ocean County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Ocean County has a water quality grade of B (63.0/100). 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).
Why does Ocean County have so many water violations?
Ocean County has 32 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 Ocean County rank for water quality in New Jersey?
Ocean County ranks #7 out of 21 counties in New Jersey by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 63.0/100, it falls in the top 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

Mercer County

New Jersey

B

62.3

Water score

Warren County

New Jersey

B

64.1

Water score

Middlesex County

New Jersey

C

61.7

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.

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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