Full contaminant data, sample history, and sourcing for Wayne County. For readers who want to go beyond the summary.
Contaminant Data — All Analytes
248 well testing events on record, covering
18 analytes.
Data spans 1965 to 2024.
Contaminant
Samples
Years
Detection Rate
Distribution LowModHigh
vs. Limit
vs. OH Avg
Iron
150
1974–2014
100%
503% of limit
~ typical
Manganese
145
1974–2014
99%
252% of limit
↑ 43% above
Arsenic
96
1974–2014
98%
105% of limit
↑ 566% above
PFOA
municipal
8
2023–2025
12%
120% of limit
~ typical
Sulfate
57
1984–2014
100%
24% of limit
↓ 45% below
Chloride
152
1974–2014
100%
17% of limit
~ typical
Lead
103
1974–2014
80%
0% of limit
↓ 100% below
Fluoride
132
1974–2014
70%
4% of limit
↓ 59% below
HFPO-DA (GenX)
municipal
8
2023–2025
0%
—
—
Nitrate
26
1974–1985
69%
0% of limit
↓ 98% below
Nitrite
22
1985–1996
36%
0% of limit
↓ 100% below
PFHxS
municipal
8
2023–2025
12%
33% of limit
↓ 38% below
PFNA
municipal
8
2023–2025
0%
—
—
PFOS
municipal
8
2023–2025
0%
—
—
Hardness
131
1974–2014
100%
—
~ typical
PFBS
municipal
8
2023–2025
12%
—
↑ 234% above
pH
214
1974–2005
100%
—
~ typical
Sodium
153
1974–2014
100%
—
↓ 22% below
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 OH.
Compare your result with Wayne County
Of the 96 arsenic tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
2% found none, and half were below 10.3 µg/L.
Of the 152 chloride tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
0% found none, and half were below 42.2 mg/L.
Of the 132 fluoride tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
30% found none, and half were below 100 µg/L.
Of the 150 iron tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
0% found none, and half were below 1.51 mg/L.
Of the 103 lead tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
20% found none.
Of the 145 manganese tests on record for Wayne County (1974–2014),
1% found none, and half were below 120 µg/L.
Of the 26 nitrate tests on record for Wayne County (1974–1985),
31% found none, and half were below 5 µg/L.
Of the 57 sulfate tests on record for Wayne County (1984–2014),
0% found none, and half were below 60 mg/L.
Data Coverage & Gaps
Well-sampled analytes (15+ samples)
Iron 150 samples
Manganese 145 samples
Arsenic 96 samples
Sulfate 57 samples
Chloride 152 samples
Lead 103 samples
Fluoride 132 samples
Nitrate 26 samples
Nitrite 22 samples
Hardness 131 samples
pH 214 samples
Sodium 153 samples
No private-well PFAS data for Wayne County
We have no private well sampling data for PFAS compounds (PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and related chemicals) in Wayne County.
PFAS has been detected in local public water systems (UCMR 5 data) — indicated by the "municipal" badge in the table above — but this does not directly indicate private well contamination.
PFAS testing for private wells requires a dedicated lab panel (~$300–$500). If you are near a military base, airport, or industrial site, consider testing proactively. Learn more about PFAS →
Public vs. Private Water in Wayne County
175Active public water systems
84,938Residents on public water
48%Households on private wells
Public water systems in Wayne 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.
CDC Health Outcome Correlations
Where contaminants detected in Wayne County have established associations with specific health outcomes, we cross-reference CDC PLACES county-level prevalence data. This is a contextual signal, not a causal claim.
This report aggregates data from the following public databases:
Water Quality Portal (WQP) — groundwater sample results for Wayne 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 Wayne County. Census data explorer →
USGS Aquifer Atlas — principal aquifer type underlying Wayne 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 Wayne County, used in contamination risk scoring. TRI Explorer →
EPA Superfund NPL — National Priorities List sites in or near Wayne 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 OH with at least one sample for that analyte.