Contaminant Data — All Analytes
2197 well testing events on record, covering
27 analytes.
Data spans 1952 to 2023.
| Contaminant |
Samples |
Years |
Detection Rate |
Distribution LowModHigh |
vs. Limit |
vs. CA Avg |
|
Radon
|
38 |
2005–2013
|
100% |
|
100% of limit
|
~ typical
|
|
Manganese
|
346 |
1980–2023
|
72% |
|
140% of limit
|
↓ 55% below
|
|
Iron
|
355 |
1971–2023
|
82% |
|
20% of limit
|
↓ 84% below
|
|
Chloride
|
2134 |
1971–2023
|
100% |
|
17% of limit
|
↓ 44% below
|
|
PFOS
municipal
|
98 |
2023–2025
|
5% |
|
115% of limit
|
↓ 45% below
|
|
Arsenic
|
193 |
1971–2023
|
82% |
|
10% of limit
|
↓ 74% below
|
|
Nitrate
|
94 |
1974–2023
|
49% |
|
4% of limit
|
↓ 82% below
|
|
Sulfate
|
387 |
1971–2023
|
98% |
|
17% of limit
|
~ typical
|
|
PFOA
municipal
|
99 |
2022–2025
|
3% |
|
128% of limit
|
↓ 23% below
|
|
PFHxS
municipal
|
97 |
2023–2025
|
4% |
|
57% of limit
|
~ typical
|
|
Lead
|
160 |
1981–2023
|
11% |
|
6% of limit
|
↓ 40% below
|
|
PFNA
municipal
|
98 |
2023–2025
|
0% |
|
— |
— |
|
Uranium
|
71 |
1981–2023
|
69% |
|
0% of limit
|
↓ 93% below
|
|
Boron
|
29 |
2005–2023
|
100% |
|
8% of limit
|
↓ 50% below
|
|
Chromium (total)
|
29 |
2005–2023
|
38% |
|
11% of limit
|
↑ 322% above
|
|
1,2,3-Trichloropropane
|
30 |
2005–2023
|
0% |
|
— |
— |
|
HFPO-DA (GenX)
municipal
|
98 |
2023–2025
|
0% |
|
— |
— |
|
Fluoride
|
383 |
1971–2023
|
93% |
|
5% of limit
|
↓ 28% below
|
|
Nitrite
|
92 |
1982–2023
|
23% |
|
0% of limit
|
↓ 76% below
|
|
Perchlorate
|
30 |
2005–2023
|
20% |
|
4% of limit
|
↓ 46% below
|
|
Tds
|
29 |
2005–2023
|
100% |
|
— |
~ typical
|
|
Sodium
|
391 |
1971–2023
|
100% |
|
— |
↓ 53% below
|
|
Total Coliform
|
3 |
1983–2023
|
17% |
|
— |
~ typical
|
|
PFBS
municipal
|
98 |
2023–2025
|
5% |
|
— |
~ typical
|
|
pH
|
2139 |
1971–2023
|
100% |
|
— |
~ typical
|
|
E. coli
|
3 |
2005–2023
|
0% |
|
— |
— |
|
Hardness
|
391 |
1971–2023
|
100% |
|
— |
~ typical
|
Distribution shows the share of samples in each concentration band relative to the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL): Low = below half the MCL, Moderate = between half and the MCL, High = above the MCL. Analytes without an MCL (e.g. sodium, pH) show — in the limit columns. State average is based on county median values across CA.
Compare your result with Santa Cruz County
Of the 193 arsenic tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1971–2023),
18% found none, and half were below 1 µg/L.
Of the 2134 chloride tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1971–2023),
0% found none, and half were below 41.6 mg/L.
Of the 29 chromium (total) tests on record for Santa Cruz County (2005–2023),
62% found none.
Of the 383 fluoride tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1971–2023),
7% found none, and half were below 200 µg/L.
Of the 355 iron tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1971–2023),
18% found none, and half were below 40 µg/L.
Of the 160 lead tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1981–2023),
89% found none.
Of the 346 manganese tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1980–2023),
28% found none, and half were below 20 µg/L.
Of the 94 nitrate tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1974–2023),
51% found none.
Of the 387 sulfate tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1971–2023),
2% found none, and half were below 42 mg/L.
Of the 29 tds tests on record for Santa Cruz County (2005–2023),
0% found none, and half were below 379 mg/L.
Of the 71 uranium tests on record for Santa Cruz County (1981–2023),
31% found none, and half were below 28.4 ng/L.
Public vs. Private Water in Santa Cruz County
97
Active public water systems
274,269
Residents on public water
10%
Households on private wells
Public water systems in Santa Cruz County are regulated by the EPA and must test and report contaminant levels. Private well owners are responsible for their own testing — there is no routine monitoring of private wells by any government agency.
Data Sources
This report aggregates data from the following public databases:
- Water Quality Portal (WQP) — groundwater sample results for Santa Cruz County from EPA, USGS, and state agencies. Browse WQP data →
- EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) — public water system inventory used to estimate the share of residents on private wells. Browse SDWIS →
- Census ACS 5-Year Estimates — well and cistern household counts (variable DP04_0074E) used to calculate the private-well percentage for Santa Cruz County. Census data explorer →
- USGS Aquifer Atlas — principal aquifer type underlying Santa Cruz County, which informs which contaminants are geologically likely. USGS Aquifer Atlas →
- EPA UCMR 5 (2023–2025) — PFAS occurrence data from public water systems, used as a proxy indicator for aquifer PFAS exposure. Rows marked "municipal" in the table above come from this source. About UCMR 5 →
- EPA Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) — industrial facility chemical releases near Santa Cruz County, used in contamination risk scoring. TRI Explorer →
- EPA Superfund NPL — National Priorities List sites in or near Santa Cruz County, used in contamination risk scoring. Superfund site search →
- CDC PLACES — county-level health outcome prevalence (kidney disease, cancer, heart disease) correlated with detected contaminants. About CDC PLACES →
Methodology
Raw records are downloaded from the Water Quality Portal and normalized to µg/L (ppb). Records are deduplicated by sample ID and date, and certified outliers are excluded. Analyte names are mapped to EPA canonical forms. Detection rates, distribution bands, and MCL comparisons are computed from the normalized dataset.
Distribution bands use the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level as the threshold: concentrations below 50% of the MCL are classed as Low, between 50% and 100% as Moderate, and above 100% as High. For analytes without an MCL (sodium, hardness, pH), distribution is not computed.
State comparison uses the median of county median values across all counties in CA with at least one sample for that analyte.
Last updated: 2026-09-10
Full methodology →