Table of Contents
Can You Drink Tap Water in Ames?
Yes, Ames's tap water is generally considered safe to drink as Ames has no active health based violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) that we are aware of. Other factors such as lead piping in a home, or low levels of pollutants on immunocompromised individuals, should also be considered, however. To find more recent info we might have, you can check out our boil water notice page or the city's water provider website.
According the EPA’s ECHO database, from April 30, 2019 to June 30, 2022, Ames's water utility, Ames Water Treatment Plant, had 0 violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act. For more details on the violations, please see our violation history section below. This assessment is based on the Ames Water Treatment Plant water system, other water systems in the city may have different results.
While tap water that meets the EPA health guidelines generally won’t make you sick to your stomach, it can still contain regulated and unregulated contaminants present in trace amounts that could potentially cause health issues over the long-run. These trace contaminants may also impact immunocompromised and vulnerable individuals.
The EPA is reviewing if it’s current regulations around pollutant levels in tap water are strict enough, and the health dangers posed by unregulated pollutants, like PFAS.
Ames Tap Water Safe Drinking Water Act Violation History - Prior 10 Years
Below is a ten year history of violations for the water system named Ames Water Treatment Plant for Ames in Iowa. For more details please see the "What do these Violations Mean?" section below.
Is there Lead in Ames Water?
Based on the EPA’s ECHO Database, 90% of the samples taken from the Ames water system, Ames Water Treatment Plant, between sample start date and sample end date, were at or below, 0.002 mg/L of lead in Ames water. This is 13.3% of the 0.015 mg/L action level. This means 10% of the samples taken from Ames contained more lead.
While Ames water testing may have found 0.002 mg/L of lead in its water, that does not mean your water source has the same amount. The amount of lead in water in a city can vary greatly from neighborhood to neighborhood, or even building to building. Many buildings, particularly older ones, have lead pipes or service lines which can be a source of contamination. To find out if your home has lead, we recommend getting you water tested.
No amount of lead in water is healthy, only less dangerous. As lead accumulates in our bodies over time, even exposure to relatively small amounts can have negative health effects. For more information, please check out our Lead FAQ page.
Are there PFAS in Ames Tap Water?
Currently, testing tap water for PFAS isn’t mandated on a national level. We do have a list of military bases where there have been suspected or confirmed leaks. There appears to be at least one military base - Boone AASF - near Ames with suspected leaks.
With many potential sources of PFAS in tap water across the US, the best information we currently have about which cities have PFAS in their water is this ewg map, which you can check to see if Ames has been evaluated for yet.
Our stance is better safe than sorry, and that it makes sense to try to purify the tap water just in case.
What do these Violations Mean?
Safe Drinking Water Act Violations categories split into two groups, health based, and non-health based. Generally, health based violations are more serious, though non-health based violations can also be cause for concern.
Health Based Violations
- Maximum contaminant levels (MCLs) - maximum allowed contaminant level was exceeded.
- Maximum residual disinfectant levels (MRDLs) - maximum allowed disinfectant level was exceeded.
- Other violations (Other) - the exact required process to reduce the amounts of contaminants in drinking water was not followed.
Non-Health Based Violations
- Monitoring and reporting violations (MR, MON) - failure to conduct the required regular monitoring of drinking water quality, and/or to submit monitoring results on time.
- Public notice violations (Other) - failure to immediately alert consumers if there is a serious problem with their drinking water that may pose a risk to public health.
- Other violations (Other) - miscellaneous violations, such as failure to issue annual consumer confidence reports or maintain required records.
SDWA Table Key
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Compliance Period | Dates of the compliance period. |
| Status |
Current status of the violation.
|
| Health-Based? | Whether the violation is health based. |
| Category Code |
The category of violation that is reported.
|
| Code | A full description of violation codes can be accessed in the SDWA_REF_CODE_VALUES (CSV) table. |
| Contaminant Code | A code value that represents a contaminant for which a public water system has incurred a violation of a primary drinking water regulation. |
| Rule Code |
Code for a National Drinking Water rule.
|
| Rule Group Code |
Code that uniquely identifies a rule group.
|
| Rule Family Code |
Code for rule family.
|
For more clarification please visit the EPA's data dictionary.
Ames Water - Frequently Asked Questions
| By Mail: | ATTN LYLE HAMMES WATER SUPERINTENDENT 1800 EAST 13TH ST AMES, IA, 50010 |
Existing customers can login to their Ames Water Treatment Plant account to pay their Ames water bill by clicking here.
If you want to pay your Ames Water Treatment Plant bill online and haven't made an account yet, you can create an account online. Please click here to create your account to pay your Ames water bill.
If you don't want to make an account, or can't remember your account, you can make a one-time payment towards your Ames water bill without creating an account using a one time payment portal with your account number and credit or debit card. Click here to make a one time payment.
Moving to a new house or apartment in Ames means you will often need to put the water in your name with Ames Water Treatment Plant. In order to put the water in your name, please click the link to the start service form below. Start service requests for water bills typically take two business days.
Leaving your house or apartment in Ames means you will likely need to take your name off of the water bill with Ames Water Treatment Plant. In order to take your name off the water bill, please click the link to the stop service form below. Stop service for water bills requests typically take two business days.
The estimated price of bottled water
$1.65 in USD (1.5-liter)
USER SUBMITTED RATINGS
- Drinking Water Pollution and Inaccessibility
- Water Pollution
- Drinking Water Quality and Accessibility
- Water Quality
The above data is comprised of subjective, user submitted opinions about the water quality and pollution in Ames, measured on a scale from 0% (lowest) to 100% (highest).
Related FAQS
Contaminants
Ames Water Treatment Plant
EWG's drinking water quality report shows results of tests conducted by the water utility and provided to the Environmental Working Group by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, as well as information from the U.S. EPA Enforcement and Compliance History database (ECHO). For the latest quarter assessed by the U.S. EPA (January 2019 - March 2019), tap water provided by this water utility was in compliance with federal health-based drinking water standards.
Utility details
- Serves: 50029
- Data available: 2012-2017
- Data Source: Groundwater
- Total: 8
Contaminants That Exceed Guidelines
- Chloroform
- Chromium (hexavalent)
- Dichloroacetic acid
- Total trihalomethanes (TTHMs)
Other Detected Contaminants
- Chlorate
- Molybdenum
- Monobromoacetic acid
- Strontium
Reminder
Always take extra precautions, the water may be safe to drink when it leaves the sewage treatment plant but it may pick up pollutants during its way to your tap. We advise that you ask locals or hotel staff about the water quality. Also, note that different cities have different water mineral contents.
Sources and Resources
Sources Cited
Additional Resources
There are a lot of contaminants in our water system, from cancer-causing pharmaceuticals to heavy metals. If your water comes from the Iowa State Water Project, you''ll be required to test your tap water for impurities.
If you have any suspicion that there may be something in your tap water, it''s important to get it tested. The results can give you information about the chemicals found, but they can also tell you about other types of contaminants. Your city will be able to tell you what it is, but your state may not. It''s important to know what you''re getting into.
According to the Iowa State Water Commission, contaminants found in tap water include lead, pesticides, herbicides, and VOCs. Those are just some of the chemicals you''ll see in your tap water in Iowa. Some of them are listed below. Look for more in your local water report.
Herbicides. There are many different kinds of herbicides that are used for crop protection. Look for t