{ "type": "water", "pwsid": "OH1302212", "name": "Clermont Public Water System", "county": "Clermont", "population": 133059, "producer": true, "source_class": "reservoir", "label": "William H. Harsha Lake plus wells in the Little Miami River and Ohio River aquifers", "bodies": [ "William H. Harsha Lake (East Fork Lake)", "East Fork Little Miami River", "Little Miami River", "Ohio River" ], "intakes": [ "Clermont Co Bmwt Fork Littl" ], "wells": 24, "aquifer": "Little Miami River Aquifer; Ohio River Valley Aquifer", "notes": "SDWIS intake name 'IN FROM CLERMONT CO BMWT EAST FORK LITTL' confirmed: Clermont County's Bob McEwen Water Treatment Plant draws surface water from William H. Harsha Lake, an impoundment of the East Fork Little Miami River.", "urls": [ "https://wrd.clermontcountyohio.gov/media/2026/04/2025_CCWRD_CCR.pdf", "https://wrd.clermontcountyohio.gov/", "https://www.wvxu.org/post/clermont-county-lake-helps-prevent-major-flooding-cincinnati" ], "chain": [ "OH1302212" ], "plants": [ { "n": "MGS (Miami-Goshen-Stonelick) Water Treatment Plant", "a": "Wellfield and plant at Miamiville, Miami Township, Clermont County, OH (no street address published)", "la": 39.209, "lo": -84.278, "pt": "approximate", "wb": "Little Miami River valley (alluvial) aquifer", "src": "Five wells in the sand-and-gravel aquifer of the Little Miami River valley at Miamiville, Miami Township", "cls": "groundwater", "in": [ { "n": "MGS well field", "wb": "Little Miami River Aquifer (buried-valley/alluvial sand and gravel along the Little Miami River)", "role": "primary", "src": "Five wells in Little Miami River valley sand and gravel at Miamiville; feeds the 2.2 MGD MGS softening plant. (5 wells)", "la": 39.209, "lo": -84.278, "pt": "wellfield", "sh": 13 } ] }, { "n": "PUB (Pierce-Union-Batavia) Water Treatment Plant", "a": "Near New Palestine, Pierce Township, Clermont County, OH (no street address published)", "la": 39.012, "lo": -84.303, "pt": "approximate", "wb": "Ohio River valley (alluvial) aquifer", "src": "Twenty wells in the sand-and-gravel aquifer of the Ohio River valley near New Palestine, Pierce Township", "cls": "groundwater", "in": [ { "n": "PUB well field", "wb": "Ohio River Valley Aquifer (buried-valley/alluvial sand and gravel along the Ohio River)", "role": "primary", "src": "Twenty wells in Ohio River valley sand and gravel near New Palestine; feeds the county's 15 MGD PUB plant. (20 wells)", "la": 39.012, "lo": -84.303, "pt": "wellfield", "sh": 87 } ] }, { "n": "Bob McEwen Water Treatment Plant (BMW)", "a": "Batavia Township at William H. Harsha Lake (East Fork Lake), Batavia, OH 45103", "la": 39.026, "lo": -84.147, "pt": "approximate", "wb": "William H. Harsha Lake (East Fork Little Miami River)", "src": "Intake in William H. Harsha (East Fork) Lake near the dam, Batavia Township, east of Batavia village", "cls": "reservoir", "in": [ { "n": "Harsha Lake intake (East Fork Little Miami)", "wb": "William H. Harsha Lake, the East Fork Little Miami River reservoir", "role": "primary", "src": "The county's only surface-water intake, near the William H. Harsha Dam in Batavia Township, feeding an 18 MGD conventional plant with granular activated carbon filters - about half the county's treatment capacity", "la": 39.026, "lo": -84.147, "pt": "intake" } ] } ], "facts": { "hist": [ [ "1938", "After the 1937 Ohio River flood, a congressional flood control act funded projects including the East Fork dam; construction waited decades." ], [ "1955", "Clermont County began producing drinking water, the start of what is now a three-plant county system on one distribution network." ], [ "1978", "East Fork Lake, later William H. Harsha Lake, became fully operational after construction began in 1970." ], [ "2021", "Clermont County Public Health issued a July 9 water quality advisory at Harsha Lake after testing found high harmful-algal-bloom toxins." ], [ "2024", "On October 9, 2024 the Batavia Village public water system (PWS 1300011) was folded into the Clermont County Public Water System." ] ], "treat": "Three plants feed one common distribution system: MGS near Miamiville treats Little Miami River valley wells, PUB near New Palestine treats Ohio River valley wells, and the Bob McEwen plant in Batavia Township treats Harsha Lake surface water. Process steps are not published.", "press": "Not published in sources reviewed for this pass.", "rate": { "g": 4.9, "n": "Effective May 1, 2025: $4.90/1,000 gal; a 3/4-inch residential meter pays a $24.50 bi-monthly minimum covering 5,000 gal, then $5.39-$6.37 in higher tiers.", "m": null }, "imp": [ [ "PFOS (finished water, MGS plant)", "10.9", "ppt", "4", "2025", "Highest MGS result, Dec 3, 2025; May 28 sample was 9.22 ppt. Both above the 4 ppt federal MCL." ], [ "PFOA (finished water, PUB plant)", "4.13", "ppt", "4", "2025", "May 28, 2025 sample, just over the 4 ppt MCL; MGS peaked at 3.69 ppt." ], [ "Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)", "73.32", "ppb", "80", "2025", "Running average under the limit, but one individual sample reached 113 ppb; range 11.6-113." ], [ "Haloacetic acids (HAA5)", "27.76", "ppb", "60", "2025", "Disinfection byproduct; range 2.8-40.8 ppb." ], [ "Nitrate", "1.32", "ppm", "10", "2025", "Ohio EPA flags nitrate in the MGS aquifer as a sign of human influence; well under the limit." ], [ "Lead (90th percentile)", "2.1", "ppb", "15", "2023", "0 of 52 samples above the action level. Batavia Village measured 0.6 ppb separately." ], [ "Copper (90th percentile)", "0.595", "ppm", "1.3", "2023", "1 of 52 samples exceeded the action level at 1.51 ppm; no violation." ], [ "Turbidity", "0.342", "NTU", "0.3 in 95% of…", "2025", "Highest single 2025 reading; 100% of monthly samples still met the treatment technique." ] ], "proj": [ [ "Bob McEwen WTP clearwell drain piping", null, "2026", "planned", "Listed for 2026 construction in the county's five-year water CIP approved May 8, 2026; cost is in a scanned summary." ], [ "PUB well field rehabilitation", null, "2026", "planned", "2026 construction year in the five-year water CIP; rehabilitates the Ohio River valley aquifer wells." ], [ "Middle East Fork WWTP improvements", null, "2026", "planned", "2026 construction year in the county's five-year wastewater CIP." ], [ "Arrowhead Wastewater Treatment Plant elimination", null, "2026", "planned", "2026 wastewater CIP item consolidating flow away from a small package plant." ], [ "White Oak lift station relocation and upgrade", null, "2026", "planned", "2026 wastewater CIP item, paired with a White Oak Road sewer replacement." ] ], "plan": [ [ "Bob McEwen WTP polymer system replacement", null, "2027", "planned", "2027 construction year in the five-year water CIP; polymer feed serves coagulation at the Harsha Lake plant." ], [ "PUB well field tower replacement, wells 1-5", null, "2027", "planned", "2027 water CIP item replacing well towers at the Ohio River valley wellfield." ], [ "PUB WTP standby generators", null, "2027", "planned", "2027 water CIP item adding backup power at the Pierce-Union-Batavia plant." ], [ "Lower East Fork WWTP improvements", null, "2027", "planned", "2027 wastewater CIP item at one of the county's two East Fork treatment plants." ], [ "O'Bannon trunk sewer improvements, Phase I", null, "2027", "planned", "2027 wastewater CIP item upgrading a major trunk sewer in the northwest county." ] ], "stress": "Summer harmful algal blooms on Harsha Lake force recreational advisories, one on July 9, 2021, and constant raw-water monitoring. PFOS at the MGS plant hit 10.9 ppt in December 2025, above the 4 ppt MCL, and Ohio EPA rates all three sources highly susceptible to contamination.", "sew": { "s": "Clermont County Water Resources runs the sanitary system and several plants, including the Middle East Fork and Lower East Fork WWTPs; the Arrowhead WWTP is slated for elimination in 2026. Sewer is billed on metered water at $5.07/1,000 gal with a $25.35 bi-monthly minimum.", "st": "No county stormwater utility or fee appears in Water Resources' navigation. The county does run a Foundation Drain Disconnect Program to keep stormwater out of sanitary sewers; rural ZIPs rely on septic." }, "fun": [ "Harsha Lake is first a flood-control reservoir for the Ohio River and Cincinnati - the Corps credited it with preventing over $87 million in flood damage by 2010 - and a drinking water source second.", "Congress funded the East Fork dam in 1938 after the 1937 Ohio River flood, but construction did not begin until 1970 and the lake was not fully operational until 1978.", "One county system blends three unlike sources: a flood-control reservoir plus two separate sand-and-gravel aquifers, one under the Little Miami valley and one under the Ohio River valley.", "Clermont keeps seven emergency interconnections with neighbors - Greater Cincinnati Water Works, Tate Monroe Water Association and Western Water - and used none of them in 2024." ] }, "zips_served": [ { "zip": "45147", "share": 1.0, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45160", "share": 1.0, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45245", "share": 1.0, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45103", "share": 0.9415, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45150", "share": 0.804, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45102", "share": 0.7054, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45122", "share": 0.5147, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45140", "share": 0.4716, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45158", "share": 0.3953, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "45244", "share": 0.4645, "dominant": false }, { "zip": "45255", "share": 0.2972, "dominant": false }, { "zip": "45157", "share": 0.0105, "dominant": false } ], "photo": { "url": "/photos/OH1302212.jpg", "caption": "William H. Harsha Lake at East Fork State Park, Clermont County, Ohio, the reservoir on the East Fork Little Miami River", "credit": "Nyttend", "license": "Public domain" }, "url": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH1302212/", "api": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/water/OH1302212.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), \"Clermont Public Water System · OH1302212\", https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH1302212/, built 2026-09-16, accessed [date].", "schema": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/schema.json" }