Water system
Mount Orab Village
EPA ID OH0801011 · Brown County · 6,607 people served · owned by a local government
Mount Orab Village treats its own water from Sterling Run (reservoirs).
The system's record
- Water bodies
- Sterling Run, Mount Orab Old Reservoir
- Raw intakes
- Mount Orab Reservoir
Mount Orab Sterling Run - Serves
- 6,607 people · Brown County
- EPA ID
- OH0801011
About this area's water
Did you know
- Mt. Orab's water source is monitored by Ohio EPA right at the village's own intake: the Division of Surface Water station is literally named 'STERLING RUN @ MT ORAB WATER INTAKE', at river mile 6.47 in Brown County.
- The village does not drink Sterling Run continuously — it watches the creek's quality and simply stops pumping when farm chemicals rise, filling two upground reservoirs when the water is good.
- Half the year the tap water is not local: in 2025 Mt. Orab bought 31.145 million gallons from Brown County Rural Water Association across 182 days, and some numbers in its own quality table are that association's…
- A three-member Board of Public Affairs runs the water works, meeting at 9:00 a.m. on the first Monday of each month, and it oversees more than 150 miles of water line and 75 miles of sewer line.
- The village was platted in 1850 by Daniel Keether.
History5
- 1850Mount Orab laid out by Daniel Keether on September 3.
- 2005A granular activated carbon stage was added to the village water treatment plant in the fall of 2005, treating filtered water for removal of organic contaminants.
- 2024One of 20 lead samples came back at 18.9 ppb, above the 15 ppb action level, though the 90th-percentile value of 1.9 ppb kept the system in compliance.
- 2025Reporting violation: the village failed to demonstrate to the state that it had delivered the required annual lead service line inventory notifications to affected consumers by July 1, 2025. Public…
- 2025Mt. Orab bought 31.145 million gallons of water from Brown County Rural Water Association across 182 days of the year to supplement its own surface supply.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgmtoraboh.us
Treatment & pressure
How it is treated
The village operates a surface water treatment plant at 116 W. Main St. Raw water is drawn from Sterling Run into two upground raw water reservoirs, then purified by conventional means using coagulation, settling and filtration; since the fall of 2005 the filtered water passes through granular…
Source: mtoraboh.usmtoraboh.us
Water pressure
not published — no distribution pressure figure appears in the village CCR, fee schedule or Board of Public Affairs pages.
What it costs
$7.18 per 1,000 gallons
Typical household bill about $35 a month for water.
Village fee schedule effective January 1, 2025. Inside the village: $20.50 minimum covering the first 2,000 gallons, $7.18 per 1,000 gallons for 2,001-5,000, and $6.66 per 1,000…
Source: mtoraboh.usmtoraboh.us
Water quality & impurities10
| Contaminant | Level | Limit | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) Range 15.2-49.5 ppb. | 28.4 ppb | 80 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Haloacetic acids (HAA5) Range 7.4-29.4 ppb. | 13.5 ppb | 60 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Total chlorine Range 1.27-2.17 ppm. | 1.65 ppm | 4 (MRDL) | 2025 |
| Turbidity Highest single 2025 result was 0.582 NTU; the lowest monthly share of samples meeting the limit was 99.52%. Standard… | 0.582 NTU | treatment… | 2025 |
| Total organic carbon (TOC) Range 1.68-2.73; a ratio above 1 means the plant met its required TOC removal. | 1.79 removal… | treatment… | 2025 |
| Fluoride Range 0.37-1.20 ppm. Water purchased from Brown County Rural Water Association measured 1.00 ppm (range 0.77-1.10). | 1.20 ppm | 4 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Nitrate Range below detection to 1.02 ppm. Purchased Brown County water measured 1.41 ppm. | 1.02 ppm | 10 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Barium Purchased Brown County water measured 0.0065 ppm in 2023. | 0.0323 ppm | 2 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Cyanide, free | 1 ppb | 200 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Lead 90th-percentile value. 1 of 20 samples came back above the action level, at 18.9 ppb; the system remained in compliance… | 1.9 ppb | 15 (action… | 2024 |
Source: mtoraboh.us
EPA compliance record
Lead at the tap: 90th-percentile result 1.9 ppb in 2024 (action level 15 ppb).
EPA record: no health-based violations since 2015.
2 violations of any kind logged since 2020: 2 for a report, record or notice that was missing, late or incomplete (the yearly water quality report, a public notice, lead line records).
Projects & plans1
Recent and current work
- Granular activated carbon treatment stage · 2005 · completed
Added in the fall of 2005 as an additional stage after filtration, to remove organic contaminants — a direct response to the agricultural pesticide and…
Source: mtoraboh.us
Supply stress
Real and documented, on both quality and quantity. Ohio EPA's source water assessment classifies the protection area around Sterling Run as highly susceptible to contamination, largely because of agricultural fields in the watershed; the CCR states that high levels of pesticides and herbicides commonly applied to those fields are found…
Source: mtoraboh.us
Sewers
Sanitary
Village-operated sanitary sewer, about 75 miles of sewer line, available only inside village limits — the fee schedule states plainly that no sewer service is provided outside the village. Residential rates effective January 1, 2025 are billed on water consumption: $24.50 minimum for the first 2,000 gallons, $11.03 per 1,000 gallons for…
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
- 45154 · Mount Orab56% of residents
Also present in 2 more ZIP codes
- 45176 · Williamsburg12% of residents
- 45106 · Tate Township and Bethel0% 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
Mount Orab Village does not buy water from another system on record; it treats its own source water.
No other system is on record buying water from Mount Orab Village.
What the records show about Mount Orab Village
Who runs it
EPA's record describes Mount Orab Village as owned by a local government. It has 2,541 service connections and serves 6,607 people.
EPA classes it as a community water system, one that serves the same residents all year.
EPA's record says it has substantially implemented source water protection under Ohio's program, dating the program from 2023. Its office telephone on EPA's record is 937-444-2657.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), water system record.
How the water is treated
EPA's treatment table registers these steps for Mount Orab Village: coagulation and settling, chlorine disinfection, iron and manganese removal, fluoridation, granular activated carbon, 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's record shows no health-based violations for Mount Orab Village since 2015.
EPA logs 2 violations of any kind since 2020: 2 for a report, record or notice that was missing, late or incomplete (the yearly water quality report, a public notice, lead line records).
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 2024, the 90th-percentile lead result at Mount Orab Village was 1.9 ppb, under both the current 15 ppb action level and the 10 ppb level that applies from 2027.
The highest result on file is 2.3 ppb, in the period ending December 2021.
EPA has 3 sampling periods on file for Mount Orab Village 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 Mount Orab Village sent EPA, 2,679 lines are counted.
| Material | Lines |
|---|---|
| Lead | 4 |
| Galvanized, needing replacement | 0 |
| Unknown material | 0 |
| Not lead | 2,675 |
| All lines | 2,679 |
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 4 samples of the water entering the pipes of Mount Orab Village in 2024 and measured 29 PFAS.
PFOA and PFOS were not detected, against a federal limit of 4 ng/L each.
The highest PFAS result was PFBA 5.5 ng/L.
Ohio EPA's own statewide sampling tested 1 plant of Mount Orab Village (latest sample June 2020). Not one of the six PFAS tested (PFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS) was detected.
| Compound | Highest result | Federal limit |
|---|---|---|
| PFOA | not detected | 4 ng/L |
| PFOS | not detected | 4 ng/L |
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 Mount Orab Village's samples in 2019, the last year it was sampled, was 46.9 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 63 µg/L and the highest single sample was 118 µg/L, from 64 samples taken from 2012 to 2019.
For HAA5, the average in the last year sampled was 33.7 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 36.5 µg/L and the highest single sample was 62.5 µg/L, from 64 samples.
| Byproduct | Limit | Latest yearly average | Worst yearly average | Highest sample | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TTHM | 80 µg/L | 46.9 µg/L (2019) | 63 µg/L | 118 µg/L | 64 |
| HAA5 | 60 µg/L | 33.7 µg/L | 36.5 µg/L | 62.5 µg/L | 64 |
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 97 samples was 1.95 mg/L (as nitrogen) in 2012; in 2019, the last year sampled, the highest was 1.74 mg/L. No sample was over the limit of 10 mg/L. Nitrate above 10 is unsafe for infants.
Arsenic was not detected in 8 samples (limit 10 µg/L).
| Contaminant | Samples | Highest result | Limit | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrate (as nitrogen) | 97 | 1.95 mg/L | 10 mg/L | 0 |
| Arsenic | 8 | 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 8 samples each.
| Compound | Limit | Samples | Detected in | Highest result | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benzene | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Carbon tetrachloride | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| 1,2-dichloroethane | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Trichloroethylene (TCE) | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Vinyl chloride | 2 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | 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. Detected: barium in 5 of 8 samples, highest 35.8 µg/L (limit 2,000). Not detected: atrazine in 23 samples, alachlor in 23 samples, chromium in 8 samples, cadmium in 8 samples, mercury in 8 samples, selenium in 8 samples, thallium in 8 samples.
| Substance | Kind | Limit | Samples | Detected in | Highest result | Samples over limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atrazine | Farm chemical | 3 µg/L | 23 | 0 of 23 | not detected | 0 |
| Alachlor | Farm chemical | 2 µg/L | 23 | 0 of 23 | not detected | 0 |
| Chromium | Metal | 100 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Cadmium | Metal | 5 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Barium | Metal | 2,000 µg/L | 8 | 5 of 8 | 35.8 µg/L | 0 |
| Mercury | Metal | 2 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Selenium | Metal | 50 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | not detected | 0 |
| Thallium | Metal | 2 µg/L | 8 | 0 of 8 | 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 746 routine total coliform samples taken in the distribution system at Mount Orab Village tested positive (0.13%); in 2019, the last year on file, 0 of 98 did. E. coli was never found in the 17 samples 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 Mount Orab Village adjusts the fluoride level to the recommended level for preventing tooth decay.
EPA's treatment table lists fluoridation among the steps at Mount Orab Village.
Measured fluoride: 0.77 mg/L on average at the plant's entry points in 2019 (in the range dentists aim for); samples ran from 0.67 to 0.95 mg/L across 8 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 not detected in 4 UCMR 5 samples at Mount Orab Village, last sampled in 2024 (the method reports from 9 µg/L).
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.
Algal toxins
Ohio EPA tests for microcystin, a toxin that harmful algal blooms can release, in raw water at the intake and in treated water.
At the intake, microcystin was detected 1 time in 227 raw-water samples, across 1 bloom season (2025); the highest raw-water result was 0.29 µg/L on December 1, 2025. The highest raw-water result since 2024 was 0.29 µg/L.
Microcystin was never detected in treated water (73 samples).
In all, 300 samples from 2016 to 2026, the latest on August 13, 2026.
| Water | Samples | Detections | Highest result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw water, at the intake | 227 | 1 | 0.29 µg/L |
| Treated water | 73 | 0 | not detected |
The ten-day advisory levels for treated water are 0.3 µg/L for children under six and 1.6 µg/L for everyone else. Any detection at the intake triggers more frequent testing until two clean weeks.
Source: Ohio EPA public water system harmful algal bloom monitoring, 2016 to present (HAB data, fetched September 2026).
Water and sewer bills
Ohio EPA's 2023 rate survey puts the water bill at Mount Orab Village for a household using 5,000 gallons a month at $492 a year, about $41 a month.
The sewer bill in the same survey is $677 a year at 5,000 gallons a month.
| Use | Water, per year | Sewer, per year |
|---|---|---|
| 2,500 gallons a month | $282 | $353 |
| 5,000 gallons a month | $492 | $677 |
| 8,000 gallons a month | $726 | $1,044 |
The survey lists it as “Mount Orab”. These are inside-city rates and annual bills at the use shown.
Source: Ohio EPA 2023 Sewer and Water Rate Survey (Ohio State University, May 2025).
How well the service area is mapped
EPA estimated the service area of Mount Orab Village 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 6,325 residents are inside the boundary, 96% of the 6,607 people Mount Orab Village 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 — 3 ZIP codes 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 OH0801011 (EPA ECHO).
Mount Orab Village's own pages: waterqualitydata.us, ewg.org
Notable facts: waterqualitydata.us, mtoraboh.us, mtoraboh.us, en.wikipedia.org
History: en.wikipedia.org, mtoraboh.us
Water quality: mtoraboh.us
Capital projects: mtoraboh.us
Rates: mtoraboh.us, mtoraboh.us
Sewers: mtoraboh.us, mtoraboh.us, mtoraboh.us
Treatment: mtoraboh.us, mtoraboh.us
Supply stress: mtoraboh.us
