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County water report

Wood County Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Wood County, Wisconsin.

Water grade

B

Water score

67.5

State rank

#3

of 71

Health violations

1

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

7.1%

490 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

59

4,967 recent measurements

Live streamflow

86%

WISCONSIN RIVER AT WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Wood County

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

B

Score: 67.5 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

1

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

7% impaired

490 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

86% of mean

WISCONSIN RIVER AT WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

59

4,967 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

B

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

67.5/100

Health violations

1

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

2.2

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Wood County’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Wood County earns a B grade for drinking water quality, scoring 67.5 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 1 health-based violation — a single incident worth monitoring.

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 small share — 7.1% — of assessed waterways are impaired (35 of 490 water bodies) across Wood County's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are phosphorus, total and polychlorinated biphenyls (pcbs). 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 2026-05-14T13:30:00.000-05:00) puts WISCONSIN RIVER at 4.2k cfs — running somewhat below its historical average at 86% of mean. 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. Wood County has extensive coverage with 59 active monitoring sites with 4,967 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include organics, pesticide and physical. 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 Wood County

Water Verdict

Wood County receives a fair water quality assessment with a grade of B and a score of 67.5 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

Wood County has recorded 1 health-based violation, meaning the water system experienced at least one exceedance of federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements. At 2.2 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is relatively low compared to many U.S. counties.

Consumer Guidance

Tap water in Wood County scores well above average for drinking-water safety. Wood County's drinking-water compliance score is 67.5 out of 100. With 1 recorded health violation, the water supply is generally reliable. The violation rate for Wood County is 2.2 per 100,000 people served. Households with infants, pregnant individuals, or immunocompromised members may want to use an NSF 53-certified pitcher filter as a low-cost precaution. Phosphorus, Total is the leading impairment cause in Wood County's watershed. With 59 active water-quality monitoring sites in Wood County, data coverage is strong. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the WISCONSIN RIVER gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Wood County has better water quality than the average county in Wisconsin. Its water score is 28 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 Wood County's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Phosphorus (excess nutrients)

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

  • 2

    Polychlorinated Biphenyls (Pcbs)

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

  • 3

    E. coli (bacteria)

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

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Wood County

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Wood County

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Wood County

Consumer Confidence Reports (WI)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Wisconsin

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

7.1%

35 of 490 assessed

Mostly healthy

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    PHOSPHORUS, TOTAL

  • 2

    POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS)

  • 3

    ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI)

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

5.0K

4,967 total readings

Most Measured

  • Organics, Pesticide
  • Physical
  • Nutrient

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

4,240cfs

May 14, 6:30 PM UTC

vs Long-Term Average

86%

Below typical

Primary Streamgage

WISCONSIN RIVER AT WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WI

USGS site
05400760
Drainage area
5,420 sq mi
Long-term mean
4,919 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 Wood 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 Wood County, Wisconsin?
Wood County, Wisconsin has a drinking-water quality grade of B with a score of 67.5/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 1 health-based drinking water violation over the past 5 years. Watershed health, monitoring records, and streamflow snapshots are reported separately on this page.
Are there any water violations in Wood County?
Wood County has 1 health-based drinking water violation 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 Wood County?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 7.1% of Wood County's 490 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (35 impaired). The top reported causes are PHOSPHORUS, TOTAL, POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS), ESCHERICHIA COLI (E. COLI). 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 Wood County?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 4,967 measurements from 59 monitoring sites in Wood County over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Organics, Pesticide, Physical, Nutrient. 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 Wood County right now?
Wood County's primary USGS streamgage on the WISCONSIN RIVER has a pipeline snapshot of 4,240 cubic feet per second — 86% of the long-term mean of 4,918.59 cfs. Flow is within typical range for this gauge. For the latest gauge feed, visit waterdata.usgs.gov.
How does Wood County water compare to the Wisconsin average?
Wood County's SDWIS water quality score of 67.5/100 is higher than the Wisconsin state average of 39.5. The average water quality grade across Wisconsin is F, based on data from 71 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Wood County?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Wood County has a water quality grade of B (67.5/100). 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).
Does Wood County have clean drinking water?
Wood County has 1 health-based drinking water violation according to EPA records. With a water quality score of 67.5/100 and grade B, 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 Wood County rank for water quality in Wisconsin?
Wood County ranks #3 out of 71 counties in Wisconsin by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 67.5/100, 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

Portage County

Wisconsin

B

67.3

Water score

Outagamie County

Wisconsin

B

66.2

Water score

Dane County

Wisconsin

B

65.0

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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