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Federal water data

County water report

Eddy County Water Report

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

Water grade

F

Water score

36.6

State rank

#6

of 32

Health violations

26

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

16.7%

78 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

36

11,190 recent measurements

Live streamflow

45%

PECOS RIVER AT RED BLUFF, NM

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Eddy County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

F

Score: 36.6 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

26

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

17% impaired

78 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

45% of mean

PECOS RIVER AT RED BLUFF, NM

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

36

11,190 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.

36.6/100

Health violations

26

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

42.1

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Eddy County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Eddy County's water systems carry a failing grade, scoring 36.6 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 26 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 notable 16.7% of assessed waterways carry an impairment designation (13 of 78 water bodies) across Eddy County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are fish consumption advisory - dde, ddt and pcbs - fish consumption advisory. 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 2026-05-14T12:45:00.000-06:00) puts PECOS RIVER at 58.8 cfs — well below its long-term average at 45% 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. Eddy County has moderate coverage with 36 active monitoring sites with 11,190 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include organics, other 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 Eddy County

Water Verdict

Eddy County receives a poor water quality assessment with a grade of F and a score of 36.6 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.

Violation Context

Eddy County has recorded 26 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 42.1 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Eddy County has a Grade F compliance record with 26 health-based violations — among the highest levels in the country. Eddy County's drinking-water compliance score is 36.6 out of 100. The violation rate for Eddy County is 42.1 per 100,000 people served. Residents are strongly advised to use a certified NSF 58 reverse-osmosis filter or bottled water for all drinking and cooking until violations are corrected. Contacting the New Mexico Department of Environmental Quality or Health can expedite utility compliance action. Fish Consumption Advisory - Dde, Ddt is the leading impairment cause in Eddy County's watershed. With 36 active water-quality monitoring sites in Eddy County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the PECOS RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Eddy County has better water quality than the average county in New Mexico. Its water score is 14.9 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 Eddy County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Fish Consumption Advisory - Dde, Ddt

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

  • 2

    Pcbs - Fish Consumption Advisory

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

  • 3

    Benthic Macroinvertebrates

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Eddy County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Eddy County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Eddy County

Consumer Confidence Reports (NM)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in New Mexico

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

16.7%

13 of 78 assessed

Some impairment

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORY - DDE, DDT

  • 2

    PCBS - FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORY

  • 3

    BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES

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

36

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

11K

11,190 total readings

Most Measured

  • Organics, Other
  • Organics, Pesticide
  • 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

58.8cfs

May 14, 6:45 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

45%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

PECOS RIVER AT RED BLUFF, NM

USGS site
08407500
Drainage area
19,540 sq mi
Long-term mean
131 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 Eddy 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 Eddy County, New Mexico?
Eddy County, New Mexico has a drinking-water quality grade of F with a score of 36.6/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 26 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 Eddy County?
Eddy County has 26 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 Eddy County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 16.7% of Eddy County's 78 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (13 impaired). The top reported causes are FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORY - DDE, DDT, PCBS - FISH CONSUMPTION ADVISORY, BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES. 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 Eddy County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 11,190 measurements from 36 monitoring sites in Eddy County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Organics, Other, Organics, Pesticide, 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 Eddy County right now?
Eddy County's primary USGS streamgage on the PECOS RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 58.8 cubic feet per second — 45% of the long-term mean of 131.01 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 Eddy County water compare to the New Mexico average?
Eddy County's SDWIS water quality score of 36.6/100 is higher than the New Mexico state average of 21.7. The average water quality grade across New Mexico is F, based on data from 32 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Eddy County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Eddy County has a water quality grade of F (36.6/100). 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 Eddy County have so many water violations?
Eddy County has 26 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 Eddy County rank for water quality in New Mexico?
Eddy County ranks #6 out of 32 counties in New Mexico by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 36.6/100, 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

Curry County

New Mexico

F

41.1

Water score

Quay County

New Mexico

F

31.3

Water score

Bernalillo County

New Mexico

D

43.4

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.

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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