EPA system MA3160000 · Massachusetts

Lowell Regional Water Utility: 3 PFAS found; PFOA averaged 1.2 ppt, below the 4.0 ppt limit

System ID MA3160000; community water system; Massachusetts; source: surface water; serves 120,418 people via 26,043 connections; status: active

In focus120,418people served, EPA registry

Public records. Clearer context.

Lowell Regional Water Utility is a local-government-owned community water system in Massachusetts serving about 120,418 people, matched to 6 ZIP codes.

PFAS treatment declared to EPA: None declared (4 of 4 sampling events) · PFAS found before UCMR 5: Yes, at 4 of 4 sampling events

PFAS and lithium: what EPA's national survey found

EPA tested this water for 30 substances and found 3. PFOA averaged 1.2 ppt where EPA's limit is 4.0 ppt. That PFOA result is higher than 88% of the 10,307 water systems EPA tested for it.

Between March 2023 and December 2023, EPA's UCMR 5 program tested 120 samples from 1 sampling location for 30 contaminants (29 PFAS plus lithium). 3 were detected above the reporting level in at least one sample. Averaged over a complete monitoring set, the highest sampling location for PFOA was 1.2 ppt, below the MCL of 4.0 ppt that applies from 2029 (highest single sample 4.6 ppt).

Sampling-point average: mean of a location's two (ground water) or four (surface water) UCMR 5 results with non-detects counted as zero, EPA's method for comparing UCMR 5 data to the PFAS MCLs. EPA rounds to the reference value's significant digits before deciding whether an average is "greater than" an MCL (PFOA/PFOS averages count as above 4.0 ng/L only from 4.05 ng/L; lithium results count as above the 10 ppb reference only from 15 ppb). This site does not apply that rounding: "at or above" here means the measured value is numerically at or above the reference.

Utility-reported context (UCMR 5 questionnaire, aggregated across sampling events): PFAS previously found at this system: yes at 4 of 4 sampling events; potential PFAS sources nearby: no at 4 of 4 sampling events; PFAS treatment in place: no PFAS treatment at 4 of 4 sampling events.

Lead at customer taps

In the latest completed monitoring period, ending Dec 31, 2025, 9 in 10 sampled homes had lead at or below 0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that triggers utility action. The action level has been reached in 3 of the 21 periods on record.

In the most recent completed lead monitoring period, ending Dec 31, 2025, the 90th-percentile lead result at customer taps was 0 ppb, below the action level of 15 ppb; 3 of the 21 monitoring periods on record reached the action level. The 90th percentile is the value that 9 in 10 sampled homes were at or below. Values are in parts per billion (ppb).

Drinking water violations since Sep 3, 2016

EPA lists 2 violations since Sep 3, 2016. 1 is health-based, meaning a contaminant or treatment rule was not met. The other 1 concerns missed monitoring, reporting or public notices. 1 is still open.

EPA's SDWIS database lists 2 violations recorded since Sep 3, 2016: 1 health-based (a contaminant above its maximum contaminant level, a disinfectant above its maximum residual level, or a required treatment technique not met), 1 for monitoring or reporting; 1 is not yet resolved.

Sanitary surveys and site visits

Most recent state inspection: Dec 1, 2023 (sanitary survey); 3 visits since Sep 3, 2021.

What you can do about these results

ZIP codes served

Sources

Data vintage: EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data, samples collected 2023-01-03 – 2026-06-17, final release, August 2026 (file dated Aug 28, 2026); EPA SDWIS via ECHO, 2026Q2 extract (file dated Jul 9, 2026); EPA service-area boundaries v3.0; Census 2020 ZCTAs. Page generated 2026-09-03.

• EPA ECHO detailed facility report
• EPA UCMR 5 Data Finder
• EPA service-area boundary: modeled, 14.5 sq mi