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Federal water data

County water report

Chesterfield County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Chesterfield County, Virginia.

Water grade

A

Water score

86.0

State rank

#10

of 95

Health violations

0

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

45.3%

161 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

41

20,372 recent measurements

Live streamflow

15%

APPOMATTOX RIVER AT MATOACA, VA

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Chesterfield County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

A

Score: 86.0 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

0

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

45% impaired

161 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

15% of mean

APPOMATTOX RIVER AT MATOACA, VA

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

41

20,372 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

A

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

86.0/100

Health violations

0

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

0.0

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Data center water stress

Chesterfield County has 8 facilities in the DCWSI dataset.

ByCounty's DCWSI ranks this county #11 nationally by combining its water score with mapped data center density.

DCWSIThe Data Center Water Stress Index: 60% the county's water-system stress plus 40% how concentrated data centers already are, scored 0-100. Higher means data-center density and water pressure overlap more here.

84.9

0-100 index

Facility count

8

83.3 density percentile

Discharge estimate

Not reported

EPA CWA fields where available

Water vs median

+36.0

Compared with US county median

Named operators

Digital FortressPowerHouse

Mapped facilities

  • CHIRISA RICHMOND LLC

    CHESTER

    EPA ECHO

  • Digital Fortress: Richmond

    Digital Fortress

    OSM

  • OpenStreetMap data center 1085712184

    PowerHouse

    OSM

  • PowerHouse CTP-02

    PowerHouse

    OSM

  • PowerHouse CTP-02

    PowerHouse

    OSM

  • PowerHouse CTP-03

    Facility details limited

    OSM

2 more mapped facilities included in the county score.

See the Chesterfield County data-center reportReview methodology

Data Center Water Budget Calculator

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

1 MW1,000 MW
40%100%
799K gallons/dayHigh Impact

Your facility would use 23.9% of this county's industrial water baseline. Verify water rights and long-term drought projections before committing.

23.9% of county industrial baseline2.55 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 Chesterfield County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Chesterfield County earns an A grade for drinking water quality, scoring 86.0 out of 100. EPA's Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) records zero health-based violations over the past five years — a strong compliance signal for a large county.

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 substantial 45.3% of assessed waterways are impaired (73 of 161 water bodies) across Chesterfield County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are escherichia coli (e. coli) and aquatic plants (macrophytes). 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 2026-05-14T14:45:00.000-04:00) puts APPOMATTOX RIVER at 191.0 cfs — well below its long-term average at 15% 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. Chesterfield County has moderate coverage with 41 active monitoring sites with 20,372 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and nutrient. 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 Chesterfield County

Water Verdict

Chesterfield County, Virginia receives an excellent water quality assessment with a grade of A and a score of 86.0 out of 100. The water supply meets or exceeds federal safety standards, and residents can generally drink tap water with confidence. Separately, EPA ATTAINS assessments cover 161 water bodies in the county's watershed, with 45.3% 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 15.3% — worth watching in drier seasons.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Chesterfield County, Virginia show zero health-based violations, indicating that the county's water systems met all federal safety standards during the reporting period. The violation rate is zero per 100,000 people served, which is the best possible outcome. This compliance record sits alongside an unusually deep monitoring archive: 20,372 water-quality results have been logged across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

The EPA compliance record for Chesterfield County shows no recent health-based violations. Chesterfield County's drinking-water compliance score is 86.0 out of 100. Watershed monitoring does show E. coli in local surface water — a reminder that treated drinking water and source-water quality are measured separately. Reviewing your utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report each July confirms that treatment is keeping pace with any upstream pressures. With 41 active water-quality monitoring sites in Chesterfield County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the APPOMATTOX RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Chesterfield County has better water quality than the average county in Virginia. Its water score is 28.3 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 Chesterfield County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    E. coli (bacteria)

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

  • 2

    Aquatic Plants (Macrophytes)

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

  • 3

    Low dissolved oxygen

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Chesterfield County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Chesterfield County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Chesterfield County

Consumer Confidence Reports (VA)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Virginia

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

45.3%

73 of 161 assessed

Moderate concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    AQUATIC PLANTS (MACROPHYTES)

  • 3

    DISSOLVED OXYGEN

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

41

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

20K

20,372 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Nutrient
  • Microbiological

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

191cfs

May 14, 6:45 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

15%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

APPOMATTOX RIVER AT MATOACA, VA

USGS site
02041650
Drainage area
1,342 sq mi
Long-term mean
1,247 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 Chesterfield 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 →

Chesterfield County has good water quality

Learn about water restrictions and conservation in your area.

Water Restrictions →

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Chesterfield County, Virginia?
Chesterfield County, Virginia has a drinking-water quality grade of A with a score of 86.0/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 0 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 Chesterfield County?
Chesterfield County has 0 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). Zero violations is an excellent record indicating consistent compliance with federal drinking water standards.
How healthy are the watersheds in Chesterfield County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 45.3% of Chesterfield County's 161 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (73 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), AQUATIC PLANTS (MACROPHYTES), DISSOLVED OXYGEN. 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 Chesterfield County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 20,372 measurements from 41 monitoring sites in Chesterfield County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Nutrient, Microbiological. 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 Chesterfield County right now?
Chesterfield County's primary USGS streamgage on the APPOMATTOX RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 191 cubic feet per second — 15% of the long-term mean of 1,247.41 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 Chesterfield County water compare to the Virginia average?
Chesterfield County's SDWIS water quality score of 86.0/100 is higher than the Virginia state average of 57.7. The average water quality grade across Virginia is D, based on data from 95 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Chesterfield County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Chesterfield County has a water quality grade of A (86.0/100). 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).
Does Chesterfield County have clean drinking water?
Chesterfield County has 0 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 86.0/100 and grade A, the county's drinking water meets EPA standards with no recorded health violations. 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 Chesterfield County rank for water quality in Virginia?
Chesterfield County ranks #10 out of 95 counties in Virginia by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 86.0/100, 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

Albemarle County

Virginia

A

86.0

Water score

Amelia County

Virginia

A

86.0

Water score

Appomattox County

Virginia

A

86.0

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.

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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