Water system
Nelsonville
EPA ID OH0501214 · Athens County · 6,656 people served · owned by a local government
Nelsonville treats its own water from Groundwater wells (3 wells).
The system's record
- Active wells
- 3
- Serves
- 6,656 people · Athens County
- EPA ID
- OH0501214
About this area's water
Did you know
- Nelsonville sits along the Hocking River, with Monday Creek running through the eastern part of town.
- Canal Street runs over the former route of the historic Hocking Canal.
- During Morgan's Raid in July 1863, Confederate cavalry burned ten wooden canal boats at Nelsonville but failed to destroy a covered bridge over the canal — townspeople put out the fire once the raiders rode off.
- In 1888 Nelsonville became the first city in the United States west of the Allegheny Mountains to light its streets electrically citywide.
- The city sells water by the gallon at City Hall — bulk water is $0.013 per gallon — and its water system also supplies the neighboring Village of Buchtel.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgcityofnelsonville.comcityofnelsonville.com
History6
- 1814Area first settled by Daniel Nelson, decades before any municipal waterworks existed.
- 1838Nelsonville incorporated, with Charles Cable as its first mayor.
- 1863During Morgan's Raid in July 1863, Confederate cavalry paused in Nelsonville and burned ten wooden canal boats on the Hocking Canal.
- 1888Nelsonville became the first city in the United States west of the Allegheny Mountains to have citywide electric street lights.
- 2022Ohio EPA issued a preliminary finding of no significant impact for Regional Collection System Improvements Phase 3, a $2.7 million fully forgivable Water Pollution Control Loan Fund award; a new…
- 2024The city misreported disinfection by-product results. Its 2025 CCR corrects the 2024 TTHM figure to 107.0 ppb with a range of 46.5-128 ppb (against an 80 ppb MCL), and the 2024 HAA5 figure to 13.2…
Source: en.wikipedia.orgcityofnelsonville.comcityofnelsonville.com
Treatment & pressure
How it is treated
Three wells near the Hocking River, north of the water treatment plant, drawing from the Hocking River Aquifer. The CCR describes treatment as ion exchange — passing water through a resin that removes charged inorganic contaminants such as arsenic, chromium, nitrate, radium, uranium and excess…
Source: cityofnelsonville.com
Water pressure
not published — no distribution pressure figure appears in the city's CCR, rate documents or utility pages.
What it costs
$18.15 per 1,000 gallons
Typical household bill about $73 a month for water.
City of Nelsonville rate memo signed by the city manager, water increase effective March 1, 2026: in town, $27.28 minimum covering the first 1,500 gallons, then $18.15 per 1,000…
Water quality & impurities10
| Contaminant | Level | Limit | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) MCL violation — the 2025 CCR marks TTHM 'Violation: Yes' and reports no single compliance value ('NA'), with individual… | NA (range… ppb | 80 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Haloacetic acids (HAA5) No violation. | 14.7 ppb | 60 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Chlorine (as Cl2) Range 0.82-1.14 ppm. | 1.14 ppm | 4 (MRDL) | 2025 |
| Nitrate (as nitrogen) | 0.29 ppm | 10 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Lead 90th-percentile value; range 0.4-3.6 ppb; 0 samples above the action level. The city's Ohio EPA service line inventory… | 1.6 ppb | 15 (action… | 2025 |
| Copper 90th-percentile value; range 0.009-0.193 ppm; 0 samples above the action level. | 0.152 ppm | 1.3 (action… | 2025 |
| Barium | 0.02221 ppm | 2 (MCL) | 2023 |
| Fluoride | 0.89 ppm | 4 (MCL) | 2023 |
| Cyanide | 1 ppb | 200 (MCL) | 2023 |
| Lithium Range 0.013-0.015 mg/L, collected under EPA's additional-monitoring program. | 0.014 mg/L | none… | 2025 |
Source: cityofnelsonville.com
EPA compliance record
Lead at the tap: 90th-percentile result 1.6 ppb in 2025 (action level 15 ppb).
EPA health-based violations since 2015:
- 2025Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.104 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · known
- 2024Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.102 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · known
- 2022Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.086 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2020Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.093 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2019Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.086 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2018Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.086 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2016Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.087 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2015Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.083 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
EPA's count of 15 includes 7 repeat quarterly violations of the problems listed.
17 violations of any kind logged since 2020: 7 for a report, record or notice that was missing, late or incomplete (the yearly water quality report, a public notice, lead line records); 10 health-based.
Projects & plans2
Recent and current work
- Regional Collection System Improvements Phase 3 (sanitary sewer) · $2.7 million · 2022 · under construction
Ohio EPA Water Pollution Control Loan Fund loan CS390649-0021, fully eligible for principal forgiveness. Over 12,000 feet of new gravity sewer, 4,000 linear… - New regional wastewater treatment plant, Elm Rock Road · 2022 · under construction
Under construction as of Ohio EPA's May 2022 environmental assessment and funded through the Water Pollution Control Loan Fund; replaces the existing plant and…
Source: cityofnelsonville.com
Supply stress
Ohio EPA's source water assessment rates the aquifer supplying Nelsonville as highly susceptible to contamination, citing the lack of a protective clay or shale layer over the aquifer, a shallow aquifer depth of less than 10 feet below ground surface, significant potential contaminant sources inside the protection area, and man-made…
Source: cityofnelsonville.com
Sewers
Sanitary
City of Nelsonville owns and operates the sanitary collection system and a wastewater treatment plant, serving roughly 1,700 customers inside the city and 300 outside it, plus regionalized connections from Murray City and Carbon Hill, with Buchtel's system acquired and Imperial, Doanville and Railroad Street being added (Ohio EPA, 2022).…
Storm
Separate storm sewers exist in at least part of the city: Ohio EPA's 2022 environmental assessment records that the sanitary sewer near Myers Street ran directly through a storm sewer catch basin, a direct pollution pathway to the Hocking River, which the…
Sourcesverified
Compiled from the utility's own reports and public records, then independently re-checked against primary sources.
Main supplier in 1 ZIP code
Serves
Main water supplier in 1 ZIP code
- 45764 · Nelsonville56% of residents
Population-weighted resident shares; a ZIP code can have more than one system on record. Recomputed from each ZIP's own system list, not from the map's cached footprint.
Buys from · Sells to
Nelsonville does not buy water from another system on record; it treats its own source water.
No other system is on record buying water from Nelsonville.
What the records show about Nelsonville
Who runs it
EPA's record describes Nelsonville as owned by a local government. It has 2,207 service connections and serves 6,656 people.
EPA classes it as a community water system, one that serves the same residents all year.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), water system record.
How the water is treated
EPA's treatment table registers these steps for Nelsonville: chlorine disinfection, fluoridation, ion-exchange softening, and sand or media filtration.
The list is what each system registered with EPA for treatment plants EPA still shows as active, and it can lag a plant upgrade.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) treatment table (EPA Envirofacts, pulled September 2026).
Violations
EPA counts 15 health-based violations for Nelsonville since 2015. Health-based means a contaminant above its legal limit or a required treatment step not carried out. They fall into 8 separate problems (one contaminant or rule in one year); the table lists them all.
EPA logs a violation for each compliance period a problem lasts, so the count of 15 includes 7 repeat entries of the problems listed.
EPA logs 17 violations of any kind since 2020: 7 for a report, record or notice that was missing, late or incomplete (the yearly water quality report, a public notice, lead line records); 10 health-based.
| Year | Contaminant or rule | Kind | Measured | Limit | Status in EPA's record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.104 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | known |
| 2024 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.102 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | known |
| 2022 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.086 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2020 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.093 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2019 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.086 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2018 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.086 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2016 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.087 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2015 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.083 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) violation records: health-based violations with compliance periods beginning in 2015 or later, all violations from 2020 or later (EPA Envirofacts, pulled September 2026).
Lead and copper at the tap
In the sampling period ending December 2025, the 90th-percentile lead result at Nelsonville was 1.6 ppb, under both the current 15 ppb action level and the 10 ppb level that applies from 2027.
The highest result on file is 5.6 ppb, in the period ending December 2018.
EPA has 8 sampling periods on file for Nelsonville since 2016, the first ending in 2018; no period was above 10 ppb.
Every water system has to inventory its service lines, the pipes from the main to each building. In the inventory Nelsonville sent EPA, 2,675 lines are counted.
| Material | Lines |
|---|---|
| Lead | 0 |
| Galvanized, needing replacement | 5 |
| Unknown material | 2,294 |
| Not lead | 376 |
| All lines | 2,675 |
Systems sample taps in the homes most likely to have lead pipes or solder. The 90th-percentile result is the level nine in ten of the sampled homes were at or below. Lead comes mostly from service lines and house plumbing, not the source water, so a low result for the system does not clear an old house.
EPA's dashboard status for this inventory: reported all required service line types.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) lead and copper 90th-percentile results (EPA Envirofacts), sampling periods ending 2016 or later; EPA's service line inventory dashboard, Ohio's 2026 Q2 submission.
PFAS
EPA's fifth national round of testing (UCMR 5) took 2 samples of the water entering the pipes of Nelsonville in 2025 and measured 29 PFAS. No PFAS was detected, PFOA and PFOS (federal limit 4 ng/L each) among them.
The system reported potential PFAS sources near its supply.
Ohio EPA's own statewide sampling tested 1 plant of Nelsonville (latest sample June 2020). Not one of the six PFAS tested (PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS) was detected.
PFAS are the 'forever chemicals' from firefighting foam, plating shops and non-stick coatings. Results are for water leaving the plant, not your tap.
Source: EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data (final release, August 2026); Ohio EPA statewide PFAS sampling, 2019 to 2021, and its sampling status map.
Disinfection byproducts
Chlorine that disinfects water also reacts with organic matter to form byproducts. Two groups have federal limits: total trihalomethanes (TTHM, 80 µg/L) and five haloacetic acids (HAA5, 60 µg/L), judged on running yearly averages at each sampling site.
For TTHM, the average of Nelsonville's samples in 2019, the last year it was sampled, was 59.2 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 86 µg/L and the highest single sample was 150 µg/L, from 61 samples taken from 2012 to 2019. A yearly average over 80 is not itself a violation, because compliance is judged site by site.
For HAA5, the average in the last year sampled was 5 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 13.4 µg/L and the highest single sample was 31.6 µg/L, from 61 samples.
| Byproduct | Limit | Latest yearly average | Worst yearly average | Highest sample | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TTHM | 80 µg/L | 59.2 µg/L (2019) | 86 µg/L | 150 µg/L | 61 |
| HAA5 | 60 µg/L | 5 µg/L | 13.4 µg/L | 31.6 µg/L | 61 |
A yearly average of 0 means nothing was detected in that year's samples. EPA's file stops at 2019; Ohio EPA's Drinking Water Watch has newer results.
Source: EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, distribution-system samples (non-detects counted as zero).
Nitrate, arsenic and radioactivity
Nitrate: the highest of 8 samples was 0.91 mg/L (as nitrogen) in 2018; in 2019, the last year sampled, the highest was 0.9 mg/L. No sample was over the limit of 10 mg/L. Nitrate above 10 is unsafe for infants.
Arsenic was not detected in 2 samples (limit 10 µg/L).
| Contaminant | Samples | Highest result | Limit | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrate (as nitrogen) | 8 | 0.91 mg/L | 10 mg/L | 0 |
| Arsenic | 2 | not detected | 10 µg/L | 0 |
Measured in finished water: at the plant's entry points and in the distribution system; raw well and intake samples are left out. Non-detects count as zero.
Source: EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, finished water.
Solvents and fuels
EPA's file holds results for all six solvent and fuel compounds it checked. Benzene, carbon tetrachloride, 1,2-dichloroethane, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and vinyl chloride were not detected in 2 samples each.
| Compound | Limit | Samples | Detected in | Highest result | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benzene | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Carbon tetrachloride | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| 1,2-dichloroethane | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Trichloroethylene (TCE) | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Vinyl chloride | 2 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
"Not detected" means the lab's result was below what its method can measure, not that the compound is absent. Non-detects count as zero in the highest-result column.
Source: EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, finished water.
Farm chemicals and metals
EPA's file holds results for 8 of the nine herbicides and metals it checked. Not detected: atrazine, alachlor, chromium, cadmium, barium, mercury, selenium, and thallium, in 2 samples each.
| Substance | Kind | Limit | Samples | Detected in | Highest result | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atrazine | Farm chemical | 3 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Alachlor | Farm chemical | 2 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Chromium | Metal | 100 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Cadmium | Metal | 5 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Barium | Metal | 2,000 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Mercury | Metal | 2 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Selenium | Metal | 50 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
| Thallium | Metal | 2 µg/L | 2 | 0 of 2 | not detected | 0 |
Non-detects count as zero in the highest-result column.
Source: EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, finished water.
Bacteria in the pipes
From 2012 to 2019, 1 of 933 routine total coliform samples taken in the distribution system at Nelsonville tested positive (0.11%); in 2019, the last year on file, 0 of 93 did. E. coli was never found in the 1 sample tested for it.
A positive coliform test is a warning sign, not a violation by itself. E. coli is a sign that human or animal waste may have reached the water. Coliform counts are routine samples only; E. coli counts include repeat samples.
Source: EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, distribution-system presence/absence tests for total coliform and E. coli.
Fluoride
The Ohio Department of Health's report to the CDC (My Water's Fluoride) says Nelsonville adjusts the fluoride level to the recommended level for preventing tooth decay.
EPA's treatment table lists fluoridation among the steps at Nelsonville.
Measured fluoride: 0.7 mg/L on average at the plant's entry points in 2017 (in the range dentists aim for); samples ran from 0.7 to 0.81 mg/L across 2 samples in 2012 to 2019.
The recommended level for preventing tooth decay is 0.7 mg/L; the federal limit is 4 mg/L. The treatment list is what each system registered with EPA and can lag a plant upgrade.
Source: CDC My Water's Fluoride (fluoridation status as reported by the Ohio Department of Health, fetched September 2026); EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) treatment table; EPA Six-Year Review 4 compliance monitoring data, 2012 to 2019, entry-point fluoride samples.
Lithium
Lithium was found in 2 of 2 UCMR 5 samples at Nelsonville, highest 15 µg/L; detections averaged 14, last sampled in 2025.
Lithium is not regulated. EPA's draft health reference level is 10 µg/L, and it occurs naturally in deep groundwater, so well systems in the northwest run highest.
Source: EPA UCMR 5 occurrence data (final release, August 2026), samples from 2023 to 2025.
How well the service area is mapped
EPA estimated the service area of Nelsonville with a computer model rather than drawing it from the utility's map, so its edges are approximate.
Counting the people who live in the ZIP codes it overlaps, this atlas estimates 4,381 residents are inside the boundary, 66% of the 6,656 people Nelsonville reports serving.
The resident count is an estimate from 2020 Census ZIP-code populations, not a count of customers.
Source: EPA Service Area Boundaries; resident estimate by this atlas from ZIP-code overlap.
Photograph
On the map
Show this system's territory on the map — 1 ZIP code in all.
Sources
U.S. EPA SDWIS and Community Water System Service Area Boundaries (v3, 2026), Ohio EPA primacy data, 2020 census blocks: the system serving most residents, traced through purchases to the treating utility; Ohio EPA 2023 Sewer and Water Rate Survey (Ohio State, May 2025) for household bills; Ohio EPA DEFA loan awards since 2016 for the loans paragraph · EPA SDWIS · EPA service area boundaries · Ohio EPA drinking water · Ohio EPA rate survey
EPA's own record for this system: Enforcement and Compliance History report for OH0501214 (EPA ECHO).
Notable facts: en.wikipedia.org, cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com
History: en.wikipedia.org, cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com
Water quality: cityofnelsonville.com
Capital projects: cityofnelsonville.com
Rates: cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com
Sewers: cityofnelsonville.com, cityofnelsonville.com
Treatment: cityofnelsonville.com
Supply stress: cityofnelsonville.com
