Water Health Check Report
New York City, NY
New York City System · Surface water source · Catskill/Delaware and Croton watersheds — 19 upstate reservoirs and 3 controlled lakes (580 billion gallon total capacity). Catskill/Delaware water (90% of supply) receives UV disinfection at the world's largest UV treatment plant (Shaft 18, 2.2 billion GPD capacity) and is unfiltered under EPA filtration avoidance. Croton water is fully filtered at the Croton Water Filtration Plant.
Fair — with 9 concerns
New York City System meets all federal legal limits but 9 contaminants exceed EWG health guidelines. No PFAS detected in UCMR5 sampling
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Lead—source matters
Lead in tap water comes from household plumbing, not the source water or treatment plant. NYC water leaves the treatment plant lead-free. The 10 ppb figure reflects first-draw at-the-tap samples from real buildings across all five boroughs—highest risk in pre-1986 buildings where lead solder or lead service lines may still be present. A NSF/ANSI 53 certified pitcher or under-sink filter removes lead at point of use.
PFAS—25 compounds tested, none detected
EPA UCMR5 monitoring found no PFAS above the minimum reporting level in New York City's water supply. The Catskill/Delaware watershed draws from protected upstate reservoirs with no industrial PFAS sources nearby—one of the cleanest large municipal water supplies in the country for PFAS.
Source: EPA UCMR5 (2023–2025) · 25 compounds tested including all regulated PFAS
Contaminants tested
38 total · 9 above EWG guideline| Contaminant | Level | Status |
|---|---|---|
53.5 ppb | Above guideline | |
Haloacetic acids (HAA5) CAS Various | 38.2 ppb | Above guideline |
Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs) CAS Various | 38.8 ppb | Above guideline |
Trichloroacetic acid (TCA) CAS 76-03-9 | 24.0 ppb | Above guideline |
Chloroform (trichloromethane) CAS 67-66-3 | 34.3 ppb | Above guideline |
Bromodichloromethane CAS 75-27-4 | 4.3 ppb | Above guideline |
Dichloroacetic acid (DCA) CAS 79-43-6 | 14.0 ppb | Above guideline |
Chromium-6 (hexavalent chromium) CAS 18540-29-9 | 0.04 ppb | Above guideline |
Lead CAS 7439-92-1 | 10.0 ppb | Above guideline |
Chlorine (residual) CAS 7782-50-5 | 0.54 ppm | Within limits |
Fluoride CAS 16984-48-8 | 0.70 ppm | Within limits |
Copper CAS 7440-50-8 | 0.19 ppm | Within limits |
HFPO-DA / GenX (hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid) CAS 13252-13-6 | ND | Not detected |
PFBS (perfluorobutane sulfonic acid) CAS 375-73-5 | ND | Not detected |
Lithium CAS 7439-93-2 | ND | Not detected |
PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) CAS 1763-23-1 | ND | Not detected |
PFHpA (perfluoroheptanoic acid) CAS 375-85-9 | ND | Not detected |
PFNA (perfluorononanoic acid) CAS 375-95-1 | ND | Not detected |
ADONA (4,8-dioxa-3H-perfluorononanoic acid) CAS 919005-14-4 | ND | Not detected |
PFOA (perfluorooctanoic acid) CAS 335-67-1 | ND | Not detected |
PFDA (perfluorodecanoic acid) CAS 335-76-2 | ND | Not detected |
PFHxA (perfluorohexanoic acid) CAS 307-24-4 | ND | Not detected |
ND | Not detected | |
PFHxS (perfluorohexane sulfonic acid) CAS 355-46-4 | ND | Not detected |
PFUnA (perfluoroundecanoic acid) CAS 2058-94-8 | ND | Not detected |
ND | Not detected | |
PFDoA (perfluorododecanoic acid) CAS 307-55-1 | ND | Not detected |
PFPeA (perfluoropentanoic acid) CAS 2706-90-3 | ND | Not detected |
8:2 FTS (8:2 fluorotelomer sulfonic acid) CAS 39108-34-4 | ND | Not detected |
4:2 FTS (4:2 fluorotelomer sulfonic acid) CAS 757124-72-4 | ND | Not detected |
ND | Not detected | |
PFBA (perfluorobutanoic acid) CAS 375-22-4 | ND | Not detected |
6:2 FTS (6:2 fluorotelomer sulfonic acid) CAS 27619-97-2 | ND | Not detected |
ND | Not detected | |
PFTrDA (perfluorotridecanoic acid) CAS 72629-94-8 | ND | Not detected |
PFPeS (perfluoropentane sulfonic acid) CAS 2706-91-4 | ND | Not detected |
PFTA (perfluorotetradecanoic acid) CAS 376-06-7 | ND | Not detected |
PFHpS (perfluoroheptane sulfonic acid) CAS 375-92-8 | ND | Not detected |
Filter recommendation
9 contaminants above guidelines. Here's what removes them.
A guided 4-question flow matches you to the right filter for your setup, budget, and household.
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Your report shows 9 contaminants above health guidelines. A specialist at Drawn can give you an expert read on your specific profile — what to prioritise, which filters actually address it, and what optimisation looks like for your household.
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- Your contaminant profile explained in plain English
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Data sources
Status flags compare detected levels against both EPA legal limits and EWG health-based guidelines—which are stricter and science-derived, independent of political feasibility.