{ "type": "water", "pwsid": "OH2200203", "name": "Erie Co. Margaretta District", "county": "Erie", "population": 5131, "producer": false, "source_class": "erie", "label": "Lake Erie (Sandusky Bay backup intake)", "bodies": [ "Lake Erie", "Sandusky Bay" ], "intakes": [], "wells": null, "aquifer": "", "notes": "", "urls": [], "chain": [ "OH2200203", "OH2201411" ], "plants": [], "facts": { "hist": [ [ "1836", "Castalia was laid out; the village takes its name from Castalia of Greek mythology." ], [ "late 1990s", "The Castalia Blue Hole, a karst spring that drew up to 165,000 visitors a year at its peak, closed to the public as a tourist attraction." ], [ "2024", "Erie County's current water and sewer rate schedules take effect with bills due on or about June 17, 2024 (District A minimum $19.25 for a 5/8\" or 3/4\" meter; $4.97 per CCF thereafter)." ], [ "2026", "Jan. 19-21: extreme cold and sustained west/southwest winds restricted raw water reaching Sandusky's Big Island Water Works — ice affected the primary Lake Erie intake and wind pushed water away from…" ], [ "2025", "The Margaretta District took part in the fifth round of the Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR5), testing quarterly for lithium and six regulated PFAS; all results were non-detections." ] ], "treat": "Margaretta treats no water of its own. The Erie County Water Division buys fully treated Lake Erie water from the City of Sandusky and distributes it. Sandusky's Big Island Water Works draws surface water from two intakes: a main intake offshore in Lake Erie and an emergency backup intake in…", "press": "Not published. Neither Erie County nor the City of Sandusky publishes distribution pressures for the Margaretta district, and no psi figure could be substantiated.", "rate": { "g": 6.64, "n": "Erie County Water District A (the general schedule), effective with bills due on or about June 17, 2024: the first 0-2 CCF (0-200 cubic feet) is covered by a minimum charge set by…", "m": 42.51 }, "imp": [ [ "Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)", "49.45", "ppb", "80 ppb (MCL)", "2025", "Range 13-58.7 ppb, sampled quarterly; by-product of chlorination. No violation." ], [ "Haloacetic acids (HAA5)", "31.13", "ppb", "60 ppb (MCL)", "2025", "Range 9.6-56.7 ppb, sampled quarterly; by-product of chlorination. No violation." ], [ "Nitrate", "1.6", "ppm", "10 ppm (MCL)", "2025", "Monthly sampling; the CCR prints the range as 0.0-1.45 ppm, which is inconsistent with the level found. Well below the…" ], [ "Fluoride", "0.9", "ppm", "4 ppm (MCL)", "2025", "Range 0.8-1.13 ppm, monitored daily; added by Sandusky to promote strong teeth." ], [ "Lead (90th percentile)", "2.2", "ppb", "15 ppb (AL)", "2025", "20 homes sampled; none exceeded the 15 ppb action level for an individual tap." ], [ "Copper (90th percentile)", "0.09", "ppm", "1.3 ppm (AL)", "2025", "20 homes sampled; none exceeded the action level." ], [ "Barium", "0.018", "ppm", "2 ppm (MCL)", "2025", "Range 0.018-0.018 ppm; erosion of natural deposits." ], [ "Free chlorine", "1.5", "ppm", "4 ppm (MRDL)", "2025", "Range 0.8-1.8 ppm, monitored continuously." ], [ "Turbidity", "0.14", "NTU", "0.3 NTU (TT)", "2025", "Range 0.01-0.14 NTU; 100% of samples met the standard." ], [ "Manganese", "0.0108", "ppb", "50 ppb (SMCL…", "2025", "Range 0-0.02 ppb; listed as an unregulated contaminant." ] ], "proj": [ [ "Sandusky intake emergency response, January 2026", null, "2026", "completed", "Sandusky water plant staff, the Sandusky Fire Department and Public Works crews worked around the clock Jan. 19-21, 2026 to restore raw water flow to the Big…" ] ], "plan": [], "stress": "Moderate and entirely borrowed. The district owns no source: all of its water is purchased treated Lake Erie water from Sandusky, whose two intakes both proved vulnerable in January 2026 — ice at the primary offshore intake and wind-driven drawdown at the Sandusky Bay backup, which together forced a two-day non-essential-use advisory for…", "sew": { "s": "Erie County's Department of Environmental Services (554 River Road, Huron; billing at 2900 Columbus Ave., Sandusky) runs the sanitary system, with a Wastewater Collection Division and a Wastewater Treatment Division. Rates effective with bills due on or about June 17, 2024: a $2.00 per-customer US EPA fee, a $16.23 minimum for 0-2 CCF…", "st": "Not published. No stormwater utility, CSO or flooding information specific to the Margaretta service area was found in Erie County or Ohio EPA sources." }, "fun": [ "Margaretta's water is bought, not made: Erie County buys every gallon it sells, from Sandusky, Huron, Vermilion and the Northern Ohio Rural Water Authority, and Lake Erie is the only source behind all of them.", "In 2025 the district tested quarterly for lithium and six 'forever chemicals' under the federal UCMR5 program and every single result came back non-detect.", "Castalia, the village at the heart of the district, is named after a spring in Greek mythology — and sits beside a real one, the Blue Hole, a 43-to-45-foot-deep karst spring that discharges about 7 million gallons a day…", "Erie County will sell you water by the coin: county-owned penstock dispensers charge 25 cents for every 12 gallons." ], "src": { "history": [ "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castalia,_Ohio", "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Hole_(Castalia)", "https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2026/01/21/water-use-advisory-continues-sandusky--erie-county", "https://www.13abc.com/2026/01/20/sandusky-issues-temporary-water-use-advisory/" ], "treatment": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/Downloads/2025MargarettaWaterQualityReport.pdf", "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/WaterMainsServices.aspx", "https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2026/01/21/water-use-advisory-continues-sandusky--erie-county" ], "rates": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/WaterRates.aspx", "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/SewerRates.aspx" ], "impurities": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/Downloads/2025MargarettaWaterQualityReport.pdf" ], "projects": [ "https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2026/01/21/water-use-advisory-continues-sandusky--erie-county", "https://www.13abc.com/2026/01/20/sandusky-issues-temporary-water-use-advisory/" ], "water_stress": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/Downloads/2025MargarettaWaterQualityReport.pdf", "https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2026/01/21/water-use-advisory-continues-sandusky--erie-county" ], "sewer": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/SewerRates.aspx", "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/EnvironmentalResources.aspx" ], "fun_facts": [ "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/Downloads/2025MargarettaWaterQualityReport.pdf", "https://www.eriecounty.oh.gov/WaterRates.aspx", "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Hole_(Castalia)", "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castalia,_Ohio" ] } }, "zips_served": [ { "zip": "44824", "share": 0.8624, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "43464", "share": 0.2433, "dominant": true }, { "zip": "44870", "share": 0.0487, "dominant": false } ], "photo": { "url": "/photos/OH2200203.jpg", "caption": "Main Street in Castalia, Ohio, served by the Erie Co. Margaretta District (Lake Erie/Sandusky Bay backup intake)", "credit": "Nyttend", "license": "Public domain" }, "url": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH2200203/", "api": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/water/OH2200203.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), \"Erie Co. Margaretta District · OH2200203\", https://crackedbuckeye.com/water/OH2200203/, built 2026-09-16, accessed [date].", "schema": "https://crackedbuckeye.com/api/schema.json" }