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County water report

Okanogan County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Okanogan County, Washington.

Water grade

D

Water score

49.7

State rank

#31

of 39

Health violations

5

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

Not reported

EPA ATTAINS coverage varies by state

Monitoring sites

20

5,237 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

COLUMBIA RIVER AT GRAND COULEE, WA

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Okanogan County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

D

Score: 49.7 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

5

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

Not reported

Coverage varies by state

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

COLUMBIA RIVER AT GRAND COULEE, WA

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

20

5,237 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

D

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

49.7/100

Health violations

5

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

17.0

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Okanogan County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Okanogan County's drinking water received a D grade, scoring 49.7 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 5 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. Okanogan County has moderate coverage with 20 active monitoring sites with 5,237 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 Okanogan County

Water Verdict

Okanogan County, Washington receives a below-average water quality assessment with a grade of D and a score of 49.7 out of 100. Residents should review their utility's Consumer Confidence Report and may want to consider additional water filtration for drinking. The county's primary USGS gauge drains roughly 74,700 square miles of upstream watershed, giving local source waters a regional footprint.

Violation Context

EPA SDWIS records for Okanogan County, Washington show 5 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 17.0 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues. For independent context, 5,237 water-quality monitoring results have been recorded across the county in the EPA Water Quality Portal over the past five years.

Consumer Guidance

Okanogan County's drinking-water compliance is below average with a Grade D, indicating repeated or unresolved violations in the recent record. Okanogan County's drinking-water compliance score is 49.7 out of 100. The violation rate for Okanogan County is 17.0 per 100,000 people served. Residents are encouraged to use an NSF 53 or NSF 58-certified filter for drinking and cooking water until the underlying violations are resolved. Running tap water for 30 seconds before use and avoiding older lead-pipe connections can also reduce exposure risk. The current Consumer Confidence Report from your utility will specify the contaminants of concern. With 20 active water-quality monitoring sites in Okanogan County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the COLUMBIA RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Okanogan County has poorer water quality than the average county in Washington. Its water score is 9.6 points lower than the state average, suggesting more challenges with contamination control or infrastructure than 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 Okanogan County's water environment

Official EPA Resources for Okanogan County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Okanogan County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Okanogan County

Consumer Confidence Reports (WA)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Washington

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

20

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

5.2K

5,237 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Nutrient
  • 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).

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Filter Cost

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Safety Grade for Okanogan County:D — Poor

Elevated violations or significant watershed impairment.

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 Okanogan County, Washington?
Okanogan County, Washington has a drinking-water quality grade of D with a score of 49.7/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 5 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 Okanogan County?
Okanogan County has 5 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 Okanogan County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 5,237 measurements from 20 monitoring sites in Okanogan County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Nutrient, 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.
How does Okanogan County water compare to the Washington average?
Okanogan County's SDWIS water quality score of 49.7/100 is lower than the Washington state average of 59.3. The average water quality grade across Washington is D, based on data from 39 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Okanogan County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Okanogan County has a water quality grade of D (49.7/100). 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).
Does Okanogan County have clean drinking water?
Okanogan County has 5 health-based drinking water violations according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 49.7/100 and grade D, the county's drinking water has had some compliance issues but continues to be monitored. 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 Okanogan County rank for water quality in Washington?
Okanogan County ranks #31 out of 39 counties in Washington by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 49.7/100, it falls in the bottom 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

Lewis County

Washington

D

49.9

Water score

Thurston County

Washington

C

50.8

Water score

Walla Walla County

Washington

C

53.3

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 Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

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