Is Kalamazoo, MI tap water safe?
Supplied by Kalamazoo Water System · serves 192,992 people (41,411 connections) · Groundwater · EPA ID MI0003520
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 limitPFOS above the federal limit in EPA's 2023–2025 testing (PFOS 6.55 ppt vs a limit of 4 ppt, where ppt = parts per trillion).
- Lead
- Below action level4 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 Jun 2026. Your home's pipes can make yours higher.
- Violations
- Resolved4 health-based violations since 2016, most recently Jul 2019.
- Pregnant, or mixing baby formula with tap water? Babies drink more water for their size, so PFAS exposure matters more for them. 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.
- Tested your own tap? Compare your result with these numbers. Moving? Compare this system with another.
- Read Kalamazoo Water System'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 (269) 337-8768. EPA: how to find it.
PFAS (“forever chemicals”)
EPA UCMR 5: 13 entry points tested Aug 2023 to Apr 2024. "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 Detected, below limit Limit 4 ppt | 2 ppt 50% of the limit |
| PFOS Above limit Limit 4 ppt | 6.55 ppt 1.64× the limit |
| PFHxS Detected, below limit Limit 10 ppt | 3.95 ppt 40% 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 | 0.4 |
| PFBS Detected, below limit Guideline 2,000 ppt | 6.35 ppt |
| PFBA Not detected Guideline 6,000 ppt | – |
| PFHxA Not detected Guideline 3,000 ppt | – |
| PFPeA Detected, no limit | 5.25 ppt |
What the utility says it is doing: The City says it began a $60 million Eastside Water Treatment project in September 2025. It includes a $50 million plant at Station 5 to remove PFAS, iron and manganese, with completion expected in November 2028.
Source: Eastside Water Treatment & Water Main (Station 5 & 14) - City of Kalamazoo. Collected by us on Nov 14, 2026, not from EPA's data. Ask the utility for the latest.
Michigan has its own PFAS limits. PFNA 6 ppt (this system's highest average: not detected), PFOA 8 ppt (this system's highest average: 2 ppt), PFHxA 400000 ppt (this system's highest average: not detected), PFOS 16 ppt (this system's highest average: 6.55 ppt), PFHxS 51 ppt (this system's highest average: 3.95 ppt), PFBS 420 ppt (this system's highest average: 6.35 ppt), HFPO-DA 370 ppt (this system's highest average: not detected). State compliance is judged on the state's own sampling, so ask the utility or the state program whether it meets them.
For context: the PFOS average is higher than at 99% of the Michigan systems EPA tested.
29 PFAS tested, 5 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
Not detected in 26 samples (reporting limit 9 ppb). About lithium.
Lead and copper
Latest 90th percentile: 4 ppb lead (Jan 2026 – Jun 2026). Below action level
Highest since 2016: 15 ppb (Dec 2019).
| Monitoring period | Lead (90th pct.) |
|---|---|
| Jan 2026 – Jun 2026 | 4 ppb |
| Jul 2025 – Dec 2025 | 5.3 ppb |
| Jan 2025 – Jun 2025 | 3 ppb |
Earlier results (9)
| Jul 2024 – Dec 2024 | 9 ppb |
| Jan 2024 – Jun 2024 | 6.3 ppb |
| Jul 2023 – Dec 2023 | 8.7 ppb |
| Jan 2023 – Jun 2023 | 7.3 ppb |
| Jul 2022 – Dec 2022 | 8.4 ppb |
| Jan 2022 – Jun 2022 | 7.3 ppb |
| Jul 2021 – Dec 2021 | 13 ppb |
| Jan 2021 – Jun 2021 | 7.9 ppb |
| Jul 2020 – Dec 2020 | 4.5 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 |
|---|---|
| Jan 2018 – Jul 2019 4 times | The water chemistry that keeps lead from dissolving out of pipes was outside the range the state set. EPA record: Lead and Copper Rule · WQP Entry Point/Tap Treatment Technique Non-Compliance (limit TT ) 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 | 261 ppb | 300 ppb |
| Vanadium | 0.36 ppb | 21 ppb |
| Molybdenum | 1.6 ppb | 40 ppb |
| Strontium | 0.22 ppm | 1.5 ppm |
| Chromium-6 | 0.12 ppb | – |
| 1,4-Dioxane | 0.4 ppb | 0.35 ppb |
Where it serves
Kalamazoo
ZIP codes the system reported serving: 49001, 49002, 49004, 49005, 49006, 49007, 49008, 49009, 49024, 49041, 49048, 49053, 49071, 49083
Nearby utilities
- Westland Water System Wayne · 29 mi
- Wyoming Water System Wyoming · 43 mi
- Grand Rapids Water System Grand Rapids · 47 mi
- Lansing Board of Water & Light Lansing · 61 mi
- Ann Arbor Water System Ann Arbor · 95 mi
- Shelby Township Water System Shelby · 99 mi
Questions
Is Kalamazoo tap water safe to drink?
Most of Kalamazoo gets its water from Kalamazoo Water System. Kalamazoo Water System had 4 health-based violations 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 Kalamazoo water have PFAS?
Yes. EPA's 2023–2025 testing of Kalamazoo Water System found 5 PFAS at least once. The highest entry-point averages were above the federal limit for PFOS: PFOS 6.55 ppt (limit 4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, 10 ppt for the others).
What is the lead level in Kalamazoo water?
The most recent 90th-percentile lead result for Kalamazoo Water System is 4 ppb, for the period ending Jun 2026. 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 MI0003520: violations, enforcement and inspections, straight from EPA.
- EPA UCMR 5 data: the PFAS and lithium results (search the file for PWSID MI0003520).
- EPA SDWIS download: the lead results, population and violation records we use.
- The utility's annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report): ask Kalamazoo Water System at (269) 337-8768, 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.