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County water report

Rockbridge County Water Report

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

Water grade

A

Water score

86.0

State rank

#35

of 95

Health violations

0

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

23.0%

174 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

59

38,038 recent measurements

Live streamflow

22%

MAURY RIVER NEAR BUENA VISTA, VA

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Rockbridge County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

A

Score: 86.0 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

0

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

23% impaired

174 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

22% of mean

MAURY RIVER NEAR BUENA VISTA, VA

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

59

38,038 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

Editorial analysis

Understanding Rockbridge County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Rockbridge 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 notable 23.0% of assessed waterways carry an impairment designation (40 of 174 water bodies) across Rockbridge County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are escherichia coli (e. coli) and benthic macroinvertebrates bioassessments. 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 2026-05-14T15:10:00.000-04:00) puts MAURY RIVER at 149.0 cfs — well below its long-term average at 22% 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. Rockbridge County has extensive coverage with 59 active monitoring sites with 38,038 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 Rockbridge County

Water Verdict

Rockbridge 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 174 water bodies in the county's watershed, with 23.0% 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 21.7% — worth watching in drier seasons.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Rockbridge 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: 38,038 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 Rockbridge County shows no recent health-based violations. Rockbridge 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 59 active water-quality monitoring sites in Rockbridge County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the MAURY RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    E. coli (bacteria)

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

  • 2

    Benthic Macroinvertebrates Bioassessments

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

  • 3

    Pcbs in Fish Tissue

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Rockbridge County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Rockbridge County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Rockbridge County

Consumer Confidence Reports (VA)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Virginia

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

23.0%

40 of 174 assessed

Some impairment

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

  • 2

    BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES BIOASSESSMENTS

  • 3

    PCBS 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

59

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

38K

38,038 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

149cfs

May 14, 7:10 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

22%

Well below typical

Primary Streamgage

MAURY RIVER NEAR BUENA VISTA, VA

USGS site
02024000
Drainage area
647 sq mi
Long-term mean
687 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

3

3 people  ·  ~225 gal/day

Annual Total

$558

Monthly

$47

Water Bill

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Filter Cost

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Safety Grade for Rockbridge County:B — Good

Minor violations; waterways mostly healthy.

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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Rockbridge County has good water quality

Learn about water restrictions and conservation in your area.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Rockbridge County, Virginia?
Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County?
Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 23.0% of Rockbridge County's 174 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (40 impaired). The top reported causes are ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI), BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES BIOASSESSMENTS, PCBS 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 Rockbridge County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 38,038 measurements from 59 monitoring sites in Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County right now?
Rockbridge County's primary USGS streamgage on the MAURY RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 149 cubic feet per second — 22% of the long-term mean of 686.7 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 Rockbridge County water compare to the Virginia average?
Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County have clean drinking water?
Rockbridge 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 Rockbridge County rank for water quality in Virginia?
Rockbridge County ranks #35 out of 95 counties in Virginia by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 86.0/100, 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

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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