Is Gilroy, CA tap water safe?
Supplied by City of Gilroy · serves 59,426 people (15,823 connections) · Groundwater · EPA ID CA4310004
Data: U.S. EPA · How we read the data · How we check it
Summary
PFAS above the 2024 federal limits. Systems have until 2029 to meet the PFAS limits.
Is it an emergency? No: PFAS limits are about years of exposure, not a glass of water, and nothing in EPA's data calls for you to stop drinking the water today. If your utility ever issues a boil-water or do-not-drink notice, follow it.
- PFAS
- Above limitPFOA above the federal limit in EPA's 2023–2025 testing (PFOA 5.75 ppt vs a limit of 4 ppt, where ppt = parts per trillion).
- Lead
- Below action level2 ppb (parts per billion) at the 90th percentile: 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below it. Action level 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in Nov 2027. Monitoring period ending Dec 2024. Your home's pipes can make yours higher.
- Violations
- Resolved1 health-based violation since 2016, most recently Jun 2022. One required an urgent public notice within 24 hours (the kind behind boil-water notices), most recently Jun 2022. What to do if you get a notice.
- Pregnant, or mixing baby formula with tap water? Nitrate is most harmful to babies under 6 months, and boiling concentrates it. Consider bottled water or a filter certified for PFAS for formula, and ask your doctor. Health effects.
- To lower your PFAS exposure now, a home filter certified for PFAS reduction works (reverse osmosis, or activated carbon certified to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58). Filters for these results.
- Built before 1986, or not sure what your service line is made of? Check your service line and test your tap. Utility data can't show your pipes.
- Got a boil-water or do-not-drink notice? What each notice means and what to do.
- Tested your own tap? Compare your result with these numbers. Moving? Compare this system with another.
- Read City of Gilroy's annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report). It lists every regulated contaminant tested and is usually on the utility's website or mailed with your bill, and you can also request it at (408) 846-0223. EPA: how to find it.
PFAS (“forever chemicals”)
EPA UCMR 5: 7 entry points tested Dec 2024 to Jul 2025. "Average" is the highest entry-point average (non-detects counted as zero), the way EPA compares UCMR 5 results to the limits. ppt = parts per trillion. These results do not determine compliance.
| Contaminant | Highest average |
|---|---|
| PFOA Above limit Limit 4 ppt | 5.75 ppt 1.44× the limit |
| PFOS One sample above limit Limit 4 ppt | 2.9 ppt 73% of the limit |
| PFHxS Detected, below limit Limit 10 ppt | 1.75 ppt 18% of the limit |
| PFNA Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| HFPO-DA (GenX) Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| Hazard Index (a combined score for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS, where above 1 is over the limit) Detected, below limit Limit 1 | 0.18 |
| PFBS Detected, below limit Guideline 2,000 ppt | 4.7 ppt |
| PFBA Not detected Guideline 6,000 ppt | – |
| PFHxA Detected, below limit Guideline 3,000 ppt | 3.6 ppt |
| PFPeA Detected, no limit | 3.9 ppt |
| PFHpA Detected, no limit | 1.8 ppt |
For context: the PFOA average is higher than at 90% of the California systems EPA tested.
29 PFAS tested, 7 detected at least once. "Not detected" means below EPA's reporting limit (about 2 to 20 ppt depending on the chemical), not proven zero. PFAS not listed were not detected. The limits for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and the Hazard Index were proposed for rescission in May 2026. That proposal is not final. Systems have until 2029 to meet the limits.
Lithium
Detected in 4 of 14 samples. Highest result 11 ppb. EPA's non-enforceable screening level is 10 ppb. Below screening level The screening level is how EPA decides what to study further, not a health limit. There is no federal limit for lithium and no filter is certified to remove it. About lithium.
Lead and copper
Latest 90th percentile: 2 ppb lead (Jan 2022 – Dec 2024). Below action level
| Monitoring period | Lead (90th pct.) |
|---|---|
| Jan 2022 – Dec 2024 | 2 ppb |
| Jan 2019 – Dec 2021 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 2016 – Dec 2018 | 0 ppb |
Earlier results (9)
| Jan 2013 – Dec 2015 | 6.5 ppb |
| Jan 2010 – Dec 2012 | 5.6 ppb |
| Jan 2007 – Dec 2009 | 2.5 ppb |
| Jan 2006 – Dec 2006 | 5 ppb |
| Jan 2004 – Dec 2006 | 2.5 ppb |
| Jan 2003 – Dec 2005 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 2004 – Dec 2004 | 5.4 ppb |
| Jan 2003 – Dec 2003 | 5 ppb |
| Jan 2001 – Dec 2003 | 0 ppb |
Lead comes from pipes and fixtures, not the source water, so it varies home to home. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 sampled homes were at or below it. More on lead.
Violations
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Jun 2022 | A Nitrate sample was above the legal limit. Urgent public notice required What that means EPA record: Nitrate · Maximum Contaminant Level Violation, Single Sample · measured 12 mg/l (limit 10 mg/L) Resolved |
Health-based violations mean a contaminant exceeded a limit or a required treatment step was missed. Monitoring and reporting violations mean required tests or reports were late or missing, so the water's quality during that time is unknown. The total includes every violation in EPA's records, most of them paperwork.
Earlier EPA testing (2013–2020)
| Contaminant | Highest | Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Manganese | 116 ppb | 300 ppb |
| Strontium | 0.55 ppm | 1.5 ppm |
| Vanadium | 5.1 ppb | 21 ppb |
| Chlorate | 99 ppb | 210 ppb |
| Chromium-6 | 1.7 ppb | – |
| Molybdenum | 5.5 ppb | 40 ppb |
Where it serves
Gilroy
ZIP codes the system reported serving: 95020, 95021
Nearby utilities
- City of Watsonville Watsonville · 12 mi · PFAS above limit
- Alco Water Service Salinas · 22 mi
- California Water Service Salinas Salinas · 22 mi
- City of San Jose – Evergreen/Edenvale/Coyote San Jose · 24 mi
- Great Oaks Water Company Inc San Jose · 24 mi
- San Jose Water San Jose · 24 mi
Questions
Is Gilroy tap water safe to drink?
Most of Gilroy gets its water from City of Gilroy. City of Gilroy had 1 health-based violation since 2016, all since resolved. EPA testing found PFAS above the 2024 federal limits, which systems must meet by 2029. Federal data can't tell you about your own pipes: lead comes from service lines and plumbing, so test your tap if your home was built before 1986. For the official word, read the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Does Gilroy water have PFAS?
Yes. EPA's 2023–2025 testing of City of Gilroy found 7 PFAS at least once. The highest entry-point averages were above the federal limit for PFOA: PFOA 5.75 ppt (limit 4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, 10 ppt for the others).
What is the lead level in Gilroy water?
The most recent 90th-percentile lead result for City of Gilroy is 2 ppb, for the period ending Dec 2024. The federal action level is 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in November 2027. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below this number. Individual homes can be higher.
Check these numbers yourself
Every figure on this page comes from public EPA records. You don't have to take our word for it:
- EPA's own report for CA4310004: violations, enforcement and inspections, straight from EPA.
- EPA UCMR 5 data: the PFAS and lithium results (search the file for PWSID CA4310004).
- EPA SDWIS download: the lead results, population and violation records we use.
- The utility's annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report): ask City of Gilroy at (408) 846-0223, or see EPA's guide to finding it.
Found something that doesn't match? Tell us and we'll check it against EPA's records. How we check our data.
Source: U.S. EPA drinking water records and PFAS testing (UCMR 5). How we read the data.