{ "type": "water", "pwsid": "OH0500212", "name": "Athens", "county": "Athens", "population": 32725, "producer": true, "source_class": "groundwater", "label": "Hocking River Valley aquifer (wells)", "bodies": [ "Hocking River" ], "intakes": [], "wells": 16, "aquifer": "Hocking River Valley aquifer", "notes": "16-17 wells in a shallow sand-and-gravel aquifer along the Hocking River, serving Athens and The Plains; no purchased water.", "urls": [ "https://www.ci.athens.oh.us/DocumentCenter/View/5709/2019-Consumer-Confidence-Report", "https://www.athensmessenger.com/news/city-of-athens-statement-on-drinking-water-and-wellhead-protection/article_cc794746-ad62-11ed-86bd-7bb810faeacb.html" ], "chain": [ "OH0500212" ], "plants": [ { "n": "City of Athens Water Treatment Plant", "a": "8 East Washington Street, Athens, OH 45701", "la": 39.3293, "lo": -82.1012, "pt": "plant", "wb": "Hocking River valley (buried-valley aquifer)", "src": "Wells in the Hocking River valley aquifer at the city's West State Street well field, about 2,000 feet north of the Hocking River", "cls": "groundwater", "in": [ { "n": "West State Street / Hocking River valley well field…", "wb": "Hocking River valley sand-and-gravel aquifer – shallow alluvial/glacial outwash deposit along the Hocking River", "role": "primary", "src": "16 active wells spread across three sub-areas on the city's west side – near Armitage Road, in West State Street Park by the treatment plant, and near O'Bleness Memorial Hospital — all drawing from the same shallow (30-60 ft) sand-and-gravel valley… (16 wells · 30-60 ft)", "la": 39.3293, "lo": -82.1012, "pt": "plant", "sh": 100, "wells": [ "Well 3", "Well 4", "Well 5", "Well 7", "Well 8", "Well 9", "Well 16", "Well 17", "Well 18", "Well 19", "Well 1A", "Well 20", "Well 2A", "Well 3A", "Well 18A", "Well 19A" ] } ] } ], "facts": { "hist": [ [ "1894", "Athens began relying on groundwater; the first well was about 4,400 ft west of the Court House and 2,000 ft north of the Hocking River, near today's West State St. well field." ], [ "1954", "The well system had expanded to supply about 1.3 million gallons per day." ], [ "2003", "Ohio EPA and the city's groundwater consultant studied sporadic volatile organic compound detections and rated the aquifer highly susceptible to contamination." ], [ "2017", "In June, Ohio EPA required Athens to obtain a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit, triggering a formal stormwater management program." ], [ "2019", "A large water treatment plant upgrade was completed and ODNR's contractor plugged an orphaned brine well in the Armitage well field." ] ], "treat": "Wells in the shallow sand-and-gravel Hocking River valley aquifer (West State St. well field) feed the plant, which chlorinates (1.03 ppm free chlorine average in 2025) and fluoridates, supplying about 2.5 MGD to Athens, The Plains and some rural customers.", "press": "Not published as a psi figure; the CCR cites Ohio EPA's rule that a boil advisory follows any drop below 20 psi, so normal pressure is kept above that.", "rate": { "g": null, "n": "Not substantiated. No Athens rate schedule was reachable this session and neither CCR carries one; the previously cited rates page returned unrelated content.", "m": null }, "imp": [ [ "Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM)", "36.2", "ppb", "80", "2024", "Disinfection byproduct; range 12.8-67.2 ppb, no violation" ], [ "Total Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)", "8.6", "ppb", "60", "2024", "Disinfection byproduct; range 6.0-13.5 ppb, no violation" ], [ "Lead (90th percentile)", "<2.0", "ppb", "AL=15", "2024", "0 of 30 home samples exceeded the action level; range <2.0-2.8 ppb" ], [ "Copper (90th percentile)", "0.084", "ppm", "AL=1.3", "2024", "0 of 30 home samples exceeded the action level; range >0.01-0.45 ppm" ], [ "Nitrate/Nitrate-N", "0.33", "ppm", "10", "2024", "Well below the MCL" ], [ "Fluoride", "1.03", "ppm", "4", "2025", "Water additive plus erosion of natural deposits; range 0.99-1.05 ppm" ], [ "PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid)", "0.0016", "ppb", "0.004", "2024", "UCMR5; about 1.6 ppt, well under the 4 ppt federal MCL. Four other PFAS also detected in trace amounts" ], [ "Iron", "0.26", "ppm", "0.3", "2025", "Approaching the non-enforceable secondary (aesthetic) standard; was <0.04 ppm in 2019" ] ], "proj": [ [ "Abandonment and sealing of Wells 22 and 23", null, "2025", "completed", "Two retired production wells sealed under an Ohio EPA grant award" ], [ "New production well 24", null, "2025", "under construction", "Project began in 2025; the city also installed three new valves associated with Well 9" ], [ "Water treatment plant window and door replacement", null, "2025", "completed", "Energy efficiency upgrade; annual groundwater monitoring in 2025 included a baseline PFAS assay" ], [ "Risk and Resiliency study", null, "2021", "completed", "Emergency preparedness assessment completed and updated in 2021" ], [ "Water treatment plant upgrade", null, "2019", "completed", "Described as a 'large' plant upgrade in the 2019 CCR; cost not published" ], [ "Armitage well field raw water line isolation", null, "2019", "completed", "The unused upper portion was excavated, cut and capped as a precaution against the Hocking River changing course" ], [ "Orphaned brine well plugging, Armitage well field", null, "2019", "completed", "ODNR hired a contractor to plug a historic orphaned brine well; confirmation samples collected in March" ], [ "16-inch valve installation, 3 Ring Street", null, "2019", "completed", "Installed during a large system outage" ] ], "plan": [ [ "Well 6 abandonment", null, "", "planned", "The city applied for and received a Well Abandonment grant from Ohio EPA to abandon Well 6" ] ], "stress": "Athens draws from a shallow (under 20 ft), unconfined sand-and-gravel aquifer along the Hocking River with no protective clay cap; Ohio EPA rates it highly susceptible and VOCs have been detected sporadically. Five PFAS compounds were detected at trace levels in 2024, all far below federal limits.", "sew": { "s": "Not covered by the water-focused CCRs. The MS4 program maps residences on private sewage systems inside the city limits, implying some homes are on septic even within Athens; the municipal wastewater plant and its receiving stream were not confirmed in sources reviewed.", "st": "Separate MS4-permitted system under Ordinance 0-52-11 (Title 5.07). In 2025 the city reviewed 36 stormwater permit applications, ran a Hocking Riversweep that removed 1,230 lbs of trash, and closed an Ohio EPA chloride reduction grant." }, "fun": [ "Athens water had a hardness of 142 mg/L in 2025 — about 8.3 grains per gallon, softening slightly from 148 in 2019.", "The city has been on groundwater continuously since 1894; the first well sat about 4,400 feet west of the courthouse, near today's West State Street well field.", "A parts-per-billion measurement is described in the city's own report as equivalent to one second in 31.7 years.", "In 2025 Athens sealed two retired wells with an Ohio EPA grant and began drilling a new production well, number 24." ] }, "zips_served": [ { "zip": "45701", "share": 0.6048, "dominant": true } ], "photo": { "url": "/photos/OH0500212.jpg", "caption": "A straightened section of the Hocking River in Athens, Ohio, above the buried-valley well-field aquifer", "credit": "Tim Kiser (w:User:Malepheasant)", "license": "CC BY-SA 2.5" }, "url": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH0500212/", "api": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/water/OH0500212.json", "generated": "2026-09-16", "license": "CC BY 4.0 for the compilation; each source keeps its own terms", "cite": "Cracked Buckeye (Open Shower Co), \"Athens · OH0500212\", https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH0500212/, built 2026-09-16, accessed [date].", "schema": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/schema.json" }