Data: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), EPA ECHO

ZipCheckup tracks EPA drinking-water compliance for 1,360 public water systems serving 624 ZIP codes in Georgia. The state record shows 5,133 EPA violations, 861 health-based.

City Water Quality Map: Georgia

Each circle represents a city. Size indicates population, color indicates water quality grade. Tap a circle for details.

A B C D F Circle size = population

Cities with Most Violations in Georgia

#	City	Grade	Violations	Systems	Population
1	Hamilton		80	5	5,976	Details →
2	Shiloh		78	3	2,285	Details →
3	Cataula		75	1	5,814	Details →
4	Waverly Hall		75	1	3,709	Details →
5	Ellerslie		75	1	2,596	Details →
6	Savannah		74	23	261,758	Details →
7	Athens		72	15	130,330	Details →
8	Vidalia		71	5	17,125	Details →
9	Moultrie		64	9	32,352	Details →
10	Valdosta		63	13	95,447	Details →

Most Common Contaminants in Georgia

Contaminant	Category	Violations	ZIPs Affected	Health Risk
Consumer Confidence Rule	Reporting	1,295	422	No
Public Notice Rule	Reporting	450	192	No
Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM)	Disinfection Byproducts	379	118	Yes
Haloacetic Acids (HAA5)	Disinfection Byproducts	336	95	Yes
Nitrate-Nitrite	Inorganic	230	132	No
Lead and Copper Rule Revisions	Treatment Technique	219	165	No
Fluoride	Inorganic	190	71	Yes
Lead and Copper Rule	Treatment Technique	169	136	No
Arsenic	Inorganic	152	60	Yes
Gross Alpha (excl. radon and uranium)	Radionuclides	152	47	Yes

Water Quality Overview

Georgia has 1,360 community water systems represented across 624 directly mapped ZIP records. The associated city records cover approximately 11,420,003 people. The available records contain 5,133 EPA violations, including 861 health-based violations.

Health-based violations account for 17% of all violations in Georgia. These violations indicate contaminant levels that may pose direct risks to human health, as opposed to monitoring or reporting failures.

Violation Breakdown

Violation Type	Count	Percentage
Health-based	861	16.8%
Monitoring/Reporting	4,272	83.2%
Total	5,133	100%

Health-based violations are MCL, MRDL (disinfectant) and treatment-technique violations. Monitoring violations indicate failures to test or report - these do not necessarily mean unsafe water, but they mean the water was not properly verified.

Cities with Most Violations

The following cities in Georgia have the highest number of EPA violations:

Violation counts are cumulative across all water systems serving each city. Higher counts may reflect larger systems with more monitoring requirements, not necessarily worse water quality.

Violation Trend Over Time

Year-by-year EPA violations recorded across all water systems in Georgia:

Health-based violations have decreased from 84 in 2021 to 37 in 2026, suggesting improving compliance across Georgia.

Most Common Contaminants

The following contaminants have caused the most violations across Georgia water systems:

How to Check Your Water in Georgia

1. Enter your ZIP code on ZipCheckup for detailed water-system data including contaminant levels and violation history; the separate Home Safety Score is a multi-source index

2. Request your CCR - every water utility must provide an annual Consumer Confidence Report

3. Get a home test - certified kits ($20-$50) or professional lab tests ($150-$400)

4. Consider filtration - NSF-certified filters can address specific contaminants found in your area

EPA Enforcement

The EPA and state regulators have taken enforcement actions against water systems in Georgia. Enforcement actions range from compliance assistance to formal orders and penalties.

Data Sources

• Water quality: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS)
• Enforcement: EPA ECHO

Updated daily.

What are EPA violations?

Health-based violations are EPA violations of a Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL), a Maximum Residual Disinfectant Level (MRDL) or a required treatment technique - the enforceable standards designed to protect human health. Georgia has 861 such violations across its water systems. Not all violations cause illness; review each violation type and duration to understand possible health implications.

Understanding water quality grades

ZipCheckup grades water systems from A to F based on EPA violation history, contaminant levels, and system compliance. Grades summarize ZipCheckup's scoring inputs; review the underlying records for specific issues. Grades are calculated per ZIP code and aggregated at the city, county, and state level.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the tap water safe to drink in Georgia?

Records for 1,360 community water systems mapped to ZIPs in Georgia show 5,133 reported violations, including 861 health-based. Water quality varies by city and ZIP code - check your specific location for detailed results.

How many violations are on record for water systems serving Georgia?

Georgia has 5,133 EPA violations on record across 624 ZIP codes; 861 are classified as health-based violations. The remainder are monitoring or reporting violations.

Which city in Georgia has the worst water quality?

Hamilton, GA has the most recorded EPA violations (80) among the cities with mapped water systems in Georgia in our data. Check your water supplier's report and test your tap water for the most accurate picture of your local water quality.

Which city in Georgia has the best water quality?

Violation records vary by water system across Georgia. Check individual city reports for details.

What contaminants are found in Georgia drinking water?

EPA regulates over 90 drinking-water contaminants nationally; water systems in Georgia monitor those applicable to each system, which can include lead, copper, nitrate, disinfection byproducts, and bacteria. The most common violations vary by region - check your ZIP code for contaminant-specific data.