Drinking water quality · 2024
· Verified
· PWSID TX0310001
What's in Brownsville, TX tap water
2 contaminants in Brownsville, TX's water sat at or above a federal limit, led by PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) at 2.3x the limit.
- !2 contaminants at or above a federal limit — worst is PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid) at 2.3x
- !2 contaminants within 20% of a limit
- !15 of 27 core regulated contaminants reported — 12 never appear in this report
- ✓No open federal violations
+How this score is calculated
Every system starts at 100. Points come off for measured levels, for the federal violation record, and for how much of the core regulated set the utility actually reported. All three inputs are the utility's own published numbers and EPA's own records.
- −41 contaminants at or above a federal limit
- −8 contaminants within 20% of a limit
- −0 open health-based violations
- −0 open monitoring / reporting violations
- −0 health-based violations resolved in the last 5 years
- −6 core regulated contaminants never reported (15/27)
A 90–100 · B 80–89 · C 70–79 · D 60–69 · F below 60. A system reporting under a third of the core set is capped at C however clean its numbers look — a short report is not a clean bill of health.
Full grading methodology, constant for constant →What to worry about
- PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid)2.3× the federal limit9.2 ng/L · limit 4 ng/L
Linked to cancer, thyroid disease, and immune effects; the EPA set an enforceable limit of 4 parts per trillion.
higher than 75% of U.S. systems
- PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic acid)1.2× the federal limit4.7 ng/L · limit 4 ng/L
Linked to cancer, liver damage, and immune effects; the EPA set an enforceable limit of 4 parts per trillion.
higher than 65% of U.S. systems
- Chloramine88% of the federal limit3.52 mg/L · limit 4 mg/L
Holds disinfection further into the pipe network, but is regulated under the same residual-disinfectant cap as chlorine.
higher than 80% of U.S. systems
- Chlorite81% of the federal limit0.81 mg/L · limit 1 mg/L
higher than 90% of U.S. systems
+34 contaminants were measured and came in below the limitShow all
| Contaminant | Measured | Federal limit |
|---|---|---|
| PFHxS (Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid) | 4.4 ng/L | 10 ng/L |
| TTHM | 31.7 ug/L | 80 ug/L |
| Arsenic | 3.4 ug/L | 10 ug/L |
| HAA5 | 19.4 ug/L | 60 ug/L |
| Combined Radium | 1.5 pCi/L | 5 pCi/L |
| Cyanide | 50 ug/L | 200 ug/L |
| Fluoride | 0.72 mg/L | 4 mg/L |
| Nitrate | 1.38 mg/L | 10 mg/L |
| Copper | 0.109 mg/L | 1.3 mg/L |
| Selenium | 3.1 ug/L | 50 ug/L |
| Turbidity | 0.05 NTU | 1 NTU |
| Barium | 0.0956 mg/L | 2 mg/L |
| Chlorine | 190 ug/L | 4000 ug/L |
| Chloride | 266 mg/L | — |
| Sulfate | 284 mg/L | — |
| Aluminum | 0.034 mg/L | — |
| Calcium | 92.3 | — |
| Lead | 0.0 mg/L | 0.015 mg/L |
| Lithium | 42.2 ug/L | — |
| Manganese | 0.0027 mg/L | — |
| Nickel | 0.0029 | — |
| Sodium | 293 mg/L | — |
| Zinc | 0.0073 mg/L | — |
| Total Coliform | 1.6 % | 0 % |
| Chromium | Not detected ug/L | 100 ug/L |
| Alkalinity | 145 | — |
| Hardness | 352 | — |
| pH | 8.41 | — |
| Total Dissolved Solids | 910 mg/L | — |
| Gross Beta Particle Activity | 7.1 pCi/L | — |
| PFHxA | 8 ng/L | — |
| PFBA | 9.299999999999999 ng/L | — |
| PFPeA | 7.6 ng/L | — |
| PFHpA | 4.1000000000000005 ng/L | — |
What this report doesn't tell you
12 of the 27 contaminants a community water system normally reports do not appear anywhere in Brownsville, TX's data. Absent is not the same as absent-from-the-water — it means nobody published a number.
+Full detail: PFAS testing, water source, historical monitoring, and the federal violation record
PFAS — EPA UCMR5 (2023–2025)
2 PFAS compounds above EPA limits in Brownsville, TX
The EPA finalized the first-ever federal drinking-water limits for six PFAS compounds in April 2024. These numbers come straight from EPA's UCMR5 lab dataset — every U.S. system serving more than 3,300 people tested every PFAS sample at an entry point to its distribution system. PFAS not listed below were either tested and not detected, or not yet sampled.
PFOS (Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid)
● Over EPA limit (2.3×)PFOA (Perfluorooctanoic acid)
● Over EPA limit (1.2×)PFHxS (Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid)
● Below limitPFHxA
● Detected (no federal limit)PFBA
● Detected (no federal limit)PFPeA
● Detected (no federal limit)PFHpA
● Detected (no federal limit)Where your water comes from · EPA SDWIS
Brownsville, TX's drinking water comes from surface water, drawn from 2 sources.
Source
- INTAKE 2 - RESACA DE LA GUERRA
- INTAKE 1 - RIO GRANDE
Treatment
- SWTP PLANT 1 - 94 W 13TH ST
- SWTP PLANT 2 - 1425 ROBIN HOOD RD
Distribution
Also buys water from SOUTHMOST REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY.
Compliance history
Federal Safe Drinking Water Act violation & enforcement records (EPA SDWIS). A violation is a regulatory determination by the state or EPA — separate from the measured levels above.
- Treatment technique violationHealth-based1 violation on record · most recent Dec 2008resolved
Source: EPA SDWIS / ECHO. View the full federal record on EPA ECHO ↗