County water report

Erie County Water Report

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

Water grade

Water score

63.5

State rank

of 57

Health violations

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

Not reported

EPA ATTAINS coverage varies by state

Monitoring sites

21,728 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

NIAGARA RIVER AT BUFFALO NY

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Erie County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

Score: 63.5 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

Not reported

Coverage varies by state

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

NIAGARA RIVER AT BUFFALO NY

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

21,728 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

63.5/100

Health violations

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

4.4

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Data center water stress

Erie County has 2 facilities in the DCWSI dataset.

ByCounty's DCWSI ranks this county #141 nationally by combining its water score with mapped data center density.

DCWSI

56.1

0-100 index

Facility count

45.0 density percentile

Discharge estimate

Not reported

EPA CWA fields where available

Water vs median

+13.5

Compared with US county median

Mapped facilities

Frontier Science
Amherst
OSM
OpenStreetMap data center 916148870
Getzville
OSM

See the Erie County data-center report Review methodology

Data Center Water Budget Calculator

Estimate daily water use for a hypothetical facility in Erie County.

Facility size: 100 MW

1 MW1,000 MW

Cooling type

Utilization: 70%

40%100%

799K gallons/dayLow Impact

Your facility would use 2.4% of this county's existing industrial water baseline — well within sustainable range.

2.4% of county industrial baseline32.70 Mgal/day remaining headroom

Based on USGS 2020 water-use data and EPA-standard cooling intensity constants. Not a substitute for site-specific water rights analysis.

Editorial analysis

Understanding Erie County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Erie County earns a B grade for drinking water quality, scoring 63.5 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 42 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. Erie County has extensive coverage with 70 active monitoring sites with 21,728 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 Erie County

Water Verdict

Erie County receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of B and a score of 63.5 out of 100. The water supply meets baseline federal standards, but there may be periods of elevated contaminant levels or infrastructure concerns worth monitoring.

Violation Context

Erie County has recorded 42 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 4.4 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is moderate and suggests recurring water quality challenges.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Erie County meets baseline safety standards, though the compliance record shows some violations worth watching. Erie County's drinking-water compliance score is 63.5 out of 100. The violation rate for Erie County is 4.4 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. With 70 active water-quality monitoring sites in Erie County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the NIAGARA RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Erie County has better water quality than the average county in New York. Its water score is 23.4 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 Erie County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Erie County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Erie County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Erie County

Consumer Confidence Reports (NY)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in New York

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

22K

21,728 total readings

Most Measured

Physical
Organics, Other
Organics, Pesticide

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).

Free tool

Estimate Your Water Costs

Water Cost Estimate

Household size

3 people · ~225 gal/day

Filter type

Annual Total

$558

Monthly

$47

Water Bill

$558/yr

Filter Cost

$0/yr

Safety Grade for Erie 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.

Try the full calculator →

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Erie County, New York?

Erie County, New York has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 63.5/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 42 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 Erie County?

Erie County has 42 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 Erie County?

EPA's Water Quality Portal records 21,728 measurements from 70 monitoring sites in Erie County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Organics, Other, Organics, Pesticide. 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.

How does Erie County water compare to the New York average?

Erie County's SDWIS water quality score of 63.5/100 is higher than the New York state average of 40.1. The average water quality grade across New York is D, based on data from 57 counties with available SDWIS data.

Is tap water safe to drink in Erie County?

Based on EPA SDWIS data, Erie County has a water quality grade of B (63.5/100). 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 Erie County have so many water violations?

Erie County has 42 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 Erie County rank for water quality in New York?

Erie County ranks #8 out of 57 counties in New York by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 63.5/100, 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

Chenango County

New York

63.0

Water score

Monroe County

New York

68.6

Water score

St. Lawrence County

New York

68.6

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.

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 May 14, 2026Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

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