# Charlotte, NC — Drinking Water Quality (2024)

> Contaminant levels for the Charlotte, NC public water system from its 2024 Consumer Confidence Report, compared to federal limits.

- Page: https://www.thewatermap.com/water/nc/charlotte/2024
- JSON API: https://www.thewatermap.com/api/water/nc/charlotte/2024
- Source: the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report (CCR)
- Verification: transcribed by a model, cross-checked by a second model, approved before publishing
- Reporting year: 2024
- Contaminants measured: 20
- Contaminants with a federal limit: 12
- Contaminants at or above the federal limit: 4
- Part of The Water Map — https://www.thewatermap.com

## Contaminants measured

| Contaminant | Category | Measured level | Sampling context | Federal limit | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chlorine | Disinfectants | 1.06 mg/L (Running annual avg) | System-wide | 4 mg/L (MRDLG) | Within the limit |
| Bromodichloroacetic acid | Disinfection byproducts | 1.7 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| HAA5 | Disinfection byproducts | 21.7 ug/L (Running annual avg) | System-wide | 60 ug/L (MCL) | Within the limit |
| Perchlorate | Disinfection byproducts | 0.07 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | 25 ug/L (NL) | Within the limit |
| TTHM | Disinfection byproducts | 64 ug/L (Running annual avg) | System-wide | 80 ug/L (MCL) | Approaching the limit |
| Bromochloroacetic acid | Inorganic chemicals | 3.8 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| Fluoride | Inorganic chemicals | 0.68 mg/L (Average) | System-wide | 4 mg/L (MCLG) | Within the limit |
| Boron | Metals | 31 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | 7 ug/L (NL) | At or above the limit |
| Chromium, Hexavalent | Metals | 0.1 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| Copper | Metals | Not detected mg/L (Range) | At the tap | 1.3 mg/L (MCLG) | None detected |
| Lead | Metals | Not detected ug/L (90th percentile) | At the tap | 0 ug/L (MCLG) | Detected — no federal limit |
| Manganese | Metals | 7.7 ug/L (Highest single sample) | System-wide | 50 ug/L (MCL) | Within the limit |
| Strontium | Metals | 42 ug/L (Maximum) | System-wide | 20 ug/L (NL) | At or above the limit |
| Perfluorohexanoic acid | PFAS ("forever chemicals") | 2.2 ng/L (Maximum) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| Perfluoropentanoic acid | PFAS ("forever chemicals") | 0.67 ng/L (Average) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| PFBA | PFAS ("forever chemicals") | 0.75 ng/L (Average) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| TOC | Physical & aggregate | 0.88 mg/L (Running annual avg) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| Turbidity | Physical & aggregate | 0.398 (Reported level) | System-wide | No federal limit | Detected — no federal limit |
| Atrazine | VOCs & pesticides | 9.1 ng/L (Highest single sample) | System-wide | 3 ng/L (MCL) | At or above the limit |
| Simazine | VOCs & pesticides | 29 ng/L (Highest single sample) | System-wide | 4 ng/L (MCL) | At or above the limit |

## What these contaminants are

- **Chlorine** — A disinfectant added to drinking water to kill bacteria and viruses. Effective and necessary, but high residual levels can cause taste and odor issues; the EPA caps the residual disinfectant level.
- **Bromodichloroacetic acid** — A brominated haloacetic acid disinfection byproduct. Part of the broader HAA9 group; monitored but without its own enforceable federal limit.
- **HAA5** — Haloacetic acids — a group of five disinfection byproducts formed when disinfectants react with organic matter. Long-term exposure above the federal limit is associated with an increased cancer risk.
- **Perchlorate** — A chemical used in rocket fuel and fireworks that can also form during disinfection. Can interfere with thyroid hormone production; has no national enforceable limit but is regulated in some states.
- **TTHM** — Total trihalomethanes — a group of four chemicals (including chloroform) formed when chlorine reacts with natural organic matter. Long-term exposure above the federal limit is linked to liver, kidney, and central-nervous-system effects and increased cancer risk.
- **Bromochloroacetic acid** — A mixed-halogen haloacetic acid disinfection byproduct. Part of the broader HAA9 group; monitored without its own enforceable limit.
- **Fluoride** — A mineral often added to drinking water to help prevent tooth decay. Beneficial at low levels, but long-term exposure above the federal limit can cause bone disease and tooth mottling.
- **Boron** — A naturally occurring element from rock and soil. No enforceable federal limit; the EPA has issued a health advisory level.
- **Chromium, Hexavalent** — Hexavalent chromium ('chromium-6') — the more toxic form of chromium. A known carcinogen by inhalation; regulated nationally only within the total-chromium limit, with stricter limits in some states.
- **Copper** — A metal that enters water from corroding household plumbing. Short-term exposure causes stomach distress; long-term exposure can damage the liver and kidneys.
- **Lead** — A toxic metal that leaches into water from old service lines, solder, and plumbing fixtures. There is no safe level of lead; it harms brain development in children and raises blood pressure in adults. The EPA sets an action level, not a health goal above zero.
- **Manganese** — A naturally occurring metal from soil and rock. No enforceable federal limit; high levels stain fixtures and laundry and can affect taste, with a health advisory for infants.
- **Perfluorohexanoic acid** — Perfluorohexanoic acid, a shorter-chain PFAS 'forever chemical.' Monitored under EPA rules; persistent and widely detected.
- **Perfluoropentanoic acid** — Perfluoropentanoic acid, a shorter-chain PFAS 'forever chemical.' Monitored under EPA rules; persistent in the environment.
- **PFBA** — Perfluorobutanoic acid, a shorter-chain PFAS 'forever chemical.' Monitored under EPA rules; persistent in the environment and the human body.
- **TOC** — Total organic carbon — a measure of organic material dissolved in the water. Not harmful itself, but it is the raw material that forms disinfection byproducts; removal is a treatment requirement.
- **Turbidity** — A measure of cloudiness from suspended particles in the water. High turbidity can shelter microbes from disinfection; the EPA enforces it through a treatment-technique standard.
- **Atrazine** — A widely used agricultural herbicide that reaches water through runoff. Long-term exposure above the federal limit can affect the cardiovascular and reproductive systems.

## How to read this

- A water-quality report covers an entire service area, not a single address.
- 'Federal limit' is the EPA standard (MCL, action level, treatment technique, etc.) that the measured level is compared against.
- 'At or above the federal limit' means the utility's own reported figure met or exceeded that standard.

_Figures are the utility's own published numbers. Generated 2026-05-25 from thewatermap.com._