Water system
Wauseon City
EPA ID OH2600111 · Fulton County · 7,568 people served · owned by a local government
Wauseon City treats its own water from Maumee River (via Napoleon pipeline) + Big Ditch/Stucky Ditch, in reservoirs.
The system's record
- Water bodies
- Maumee River, Big Ditch, Stucky Ditch
- Raw intakes
- Napoleon Maumee River
Stucky Ditch Creek
Big Ditch - Serves
- 7,568 people · Fulton County
- EPA ID
- OH2600111
About this area's water
Did you know
- The raw-water line between Wauseon and Napoleon runs both directions: Wauseon can pull Maumee River water in, or push its own reservoir water back to Napoleon to be treated there when the river is too dirty. It never…
- Wauseon's reservoirs are upground basins, not dammed valleys — a 50-acre one holding 350 million usable gallons and a 15-acre one holding 90 million, filled by pump stations on two farm ditches that drain just 6.6…
- The plant ran 22,069 turbidity samples in 2025. The single cloudiest reading all year was 0.8 NTU, and the worst month still met the standard 99.9996% of the time.
- Wauseon's water is softened the old-fashioned way, with lime and soda ash — a class 3 lime/soda softening plant whose chemical list runs to nine items including potassium permanganate and carbon dioxide.
- The city sells treated water beyond its own limits: it supplies the Village of Lyons, and Fulton County's 100,000-gallon fairgrounds tank is part of the Wauseon system.
History4
- 1989Wauseon's wastewater treatment plant began operations on February 27, 1989, after nearly a decade of preliminary planning.
- 2001In August 2001 Wauseon's reservoir began receiving Maumee River water through a new raw-water line from Napoleon; since then most of the city's drinking water has come from the Maumee rather than…
- 2023Triennial lead and copper distribution sampling: 0 of 20 samples over the action level, with lead at the 90th percentile non-detectable.
- 2025The water plant is operating under a conditional license to operate, placed under Ohio EPA findings and orders for past total trihalomethane (TTHM) violations; the unconditional license returns once…
Treatment & pressure
How it is treated
Class 3 lime/soda softening plant at 14514 County Road C, treating about 1 million gallons per day with capacity for 3 MGD; not automated, so staff run it 12 hours a day, 365 days a year. Raw water comes from two upground reservoirs — a 50-acre basin holding 350 million usable gallons and a 15-acre…
Source: cityofwauseon.comcityofwauseon.com
Water pressure
Not published. The city documents finished storage in detail (two elevated towers totaling 1 million gallons, 1 million gallons underground at the plant, and a 100,000-gallon…
What it costs
Not published online. The Water Department page (230 Clinton Street) covers starting service, the $125 security deposit for lease holders, ACH enrollment and the online payment…
Water quality & impurities10
| Contaminant | Level | Limit | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total trihalomethanes (site DS202) Range 47.6-77.1 ppb. The highest running annual average in 2025 was 72.58 ppb in the second quarter. No violation in… | 60.9 ppb | 80 (MCL… | 2025 |
| Total haloacetic acids (site DS201) Range 22.7-45.3 ppb. | 30.7 ppb | 60 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Total haloacetic acids (site DS202) Range 19.2-42.8 ppb. | 28.1 ppb | 60 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Total trihalomethanes (site DS201) Range 6.4-28.7 ppb. | 17.7 ppb | 80 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Nitrate Range 0.2-1.85 ppm. Runoff from fertilizer use. | 1.85 ppm | 10 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Fluoride Range 0.93-1.12 ppm; added at the plant as hydrofluorosilicic acid. | 1.12 ppm | 4.0 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Total chlorine Range 1.0-1.57 ppm. | 1.30 ppm | 4 (MRDL) | 2025 |
| Atrazine Range ND-0.16 ppb. Runoff from herbicide used on row crops. | 0.12 ppb | 3 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Barium | 0.013 ppm | 2 (MCL) | 2025 |
| Turbidity Highest of 22,069 samples run in 2025; lowest monthly percentage meeting the limit was 99.9996%. | 0.8 NTU… | Treatment… | 2025 |
Source: cityofwauseon.comcityofwauseon.com
EPA compliance record
Lead at the tap: 90th-percentile result 0 ppb in 2023 (action level 15 ppb).
EPA health-based violations since 2015:
- 2024Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.082 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2023Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.085 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2022Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.089 MG/L (limit 0.08 MG/L) · returned to compliance
- 2021Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) · above the legal limit on average · measured 0.085 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
EPA's count of 8 includes 3 repeat quarterly violations of the problems listed.
7 violations of any kind logged since 2020: 7 health-based.
Projects & plans4
Recent and current work
- Napoleon-to-Wauseon raw water pipeline · 2001 · completed
Brought Maumee River water into Wauseon's reservoir starting August 2001 and has supplied most of the city's water since. Reversible, so reservoir water can be… - Wauseon wastewater treatment plant · 1989 · completed
1.5 MGD advanced secondary water reclamation plant on 11 acres north of Leggett Street, online 27 February 1989 after nearly a decade of planning; site has… - Trihalomethane reduction improvements at the water plant · 2025 · under construction
The 2025 CCR states the plant made several operational changes to bring TTHM numbers down, undertaken under Ohio EPA findings and orders; the conditional…
Source: cityofwauseon.comcityofwauseon.comcityofwauseon.com
Planned or needed
- Further trihalomethane improvements at the county public works site and throughout the distribution system · planned
Named in the 2025 CCR as continuing work to reduce disinfection byproducts. No cost, scope or schedule published.
Source: cityofwauseon.com
Supply stress
Quantity risk is real but engineered around. The two upground reservoirs hold about 440 million usable gallons but are fed by only 6.6 square miles of creek runoff, which is precisely why the Napoleon line exists: since August 2001 most of Wauseon's water has come from the Maumee River rather than from Big Ditch and Stuckey Ditch.…
Sewers
Sanitary
City-operated 1.5 MGD advanced secondary water reclamation plant at 945 E Leggett Street, on an 11-acre site on the east edge of town, in service since 27 February 1989 with room to expand to a 4.4 MGD peak. Flow arrives from the north and south ends of the system, combines at the head of the plant and is lifted by screw pumps high…
Storm
No separate storm sewer system or stormwater utility fee is published. Wauseon's collection system is explicitly a partially combined system that receives both storm water and sanitary flow and conveys both to the wastewater treatment plant — and the city's…
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
- 43567 · Wauseon58% 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
Wauseon City does not buy water from another system on record; it treats its own source water.
1 system on record buys water from Wauseon City: Lyons Village.
What the records show about Wauseon City
Who runs it
EPA's record describes Wauseon City as owned by a local government. It has 3,123 service connections and serves 7,568 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 419-335-9871.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), water system record.
How the water is treated
EPA's treatment table registers these steps for Wauseon City: aeration, corrosion control, coagulation and settling, chlorine disinfection, iron and manganese removal, fluoridation, lime softening, powdered 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 counts 8 health-based violations for Wauseon City since 2015. Health-based means a contaminant above its legal limit or a required treatment step not carried out. They fall into 5 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 8 includes 3 repeat entries of the problems listed.
EPA logs 7 violations of any kind since 2020: 7 health-based.
| Year | Contaminant or rule | Kind | Measured | Limit | Status in EPA's record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.082 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2023 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.085 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2022 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.089 mg/L | 0.08 mg/L | returned to compliance |
| 2021 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) | above the legal limit on average | 0.085 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 |
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 2023, the 90th-percentile lead result at Wauseon City was 0 ppb, under both the current 15 ppb action level and the 10 ppb level that applies from 2027. A result of 0 means at least nine in ten of the homes sampled had no lead detected.
EPA has 3 sampling periods on file for Wauseon City since 2016, the first ending in 2017; 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 Wauseon City sent EPA, 3,201 lines are counted.
| Material | Lines |
|---|---|
| Lead | 0 |
| Galvanized, needing replacement | 164 |
| Unknown material | 436 |
| Not lead | 2,601 |
| All lines | 3,201 |
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 Wauseon City in 2025 and measured 29 PFAS.
PFOA and PFOS were not detected, against a federal limit of 4 ng/L each.
The highest PFAS results were PFPeA 11 ng/L, PFHxA 9.3 ng/L, and PFBA 8.4 ng/L.
The system reported potential PFAS sources near its supply.
Ohio EPA's own statewide sampling tested 1 plant of Wauseon City (latest sample May 2021). 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 Wauseon City's samples in 2019, the last year it was sampled, was 37.7 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 73 µg/L and the highest single sample was 156 µg/L, from 70 samples taken from 2012 to 2019.
For HAA5, the average in the last year sampled was 20.2 µg/L. The worst yearly average was 27.2 µg/L and the highest single sample was 39 µg/L, from 70 samples.
| Byproduct | Limit | Latest yearly average | Worst yearly average | Highest sample | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TTHM | 80 µg/L | 37.7 µg/L (2019) | 73 µg/L | 156 µg/L | 70 |
| HAA5 | 60 µg/L | 20.2 µg/L | 27.2 µg/L | 39 µg/L | 70 |
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 100 samples was 2.43 mg/L (as nitrogen) in 2013; in 2019, the last year sampled, the highest was 2.25 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) | 100 | 2.43 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: atrazine in 3 of 24 samples, highest 0.52 µg/L (limit 3); barium in 8 of 8 samples, highest 11 µg/L (limit 2,000). Not detected: alachlor in 24 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 | 24 | 3 of 24 | 0.52 µg/L | 0 |
| Alachlor | Farm chemical | 2 µg/L | 24 | 0 of 24 | 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 | 8 of 8 | 11 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, 0 of 871 routine total coliform samples taken in the distribution system at Wauseon City tested positive (0%); in 2019, the last year on file, 0 of 108 did.
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 Wauseon City adjusts the fluoride level to the recommended level for preventing tooth decay.
EPA's treatment table lists fluoridation among the steps at Wauseon City.
Measured fluoride: 0.96 mg/L on average at the plant's entry points in 2019 (in the range dentists aim for); samples ran from 0.91 to 1.15 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 Wauseon City, last sampled in 2025 (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 12 times in 256 raw-water samples, across 3 bloom seasons (2018 to 2022); the highest raw-water result was 8.816 µg/L on June 30, 2020. There has been no raw-water detection since 2024.
Microcystin was never detected in treated water (149 samples).
In all, 405 samples from 2016 to 2026, the latest on August 25, 2026.
| Water | Samples | Detections | Highest result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raw water, at the intake | 256 | 12 | 8.816 µg/L |
| Treated water | 149 | 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 Wauseon City for a household using 5,000 gallons a month at $678 a year, about $57 a month.
| Use | Water, per year | Sewer, per year |
|---|---|---|
| 2,500 gallons a month | $389 | not on file |
| 5,000 gallons a month | $678 | not on file |
| 8,000 gallons a month | $918 | not on file |
The survey lists it as “Wauseon”. 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 Wauseon City 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 7,664 residents are inside the boundary, 101% of the 7,568 people Wauseon City 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 OH2600111 (EPA ECHO).
Wauseon City's own pages: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Notable facts: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
History: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Water quality: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Planned work: cityofwauseon.com
Water pressure: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Capital projects: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Rates: cityofwauseon.com, codelibrary.amlegal.com
Sewers: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Treatment: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com
Supply stress: cityofwauseon.com, cityofwauseon.com