Is Allentown, PA tap water safe?
Supplied by Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division · serves 118,000 people (33,498 connections) · Surface water · EPA ID PA3390024
Data: U.S. EPA · How we read the data · How we check it
Most of Allentown gets its water from Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division. Parts of the city are served by 2 smaller systems: Swt Main System (14,500 people), Hanover Township Lehigh County Water System (520 people). Your water bill names your system.
Summary
No federal limits exceeded in EPA data.
- PFAS
- Detected, below limit4 of 29 PFAS found at least once. All averages below the federal limits.
- Lead
- Below action level7 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 Sep 2025. Your home's pipes can make yours higher.
- Violations
- None health-basedNo health-based violations since 2016.
- 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.
- Want to reduce what was found? Filters for these results.
- Tested your own tap? Compare your result with these numbers. Moving? Compare this system with another.
- Read Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division'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 (610) 398-2503. EPA: how to find it.
PFAS (“forever chemicals”)
EPA UCMR 5: 2 entry points tested Feb 2023 to Nov 2023. "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 Not detected Limit 4 ppt | – |
| PFOS One sample above limit Limit 4 ppt | 1.1 ppt 28% of the limit |
| PFHxS Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| 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 | 0.00038 |
| PFBS Detected, below limit Guideline 2,000 ppt | 0.75 ppt |
| PFBA Not detected Guideline 6,000 ppt | – |
| PFHxA Detected, below limit Guideline 3,000 ppt | 3.92 ppt |
| PFPeA Detected, no limit | 5.25 ppt |
Pennsylvania has its own PFAS limits. PFOA 14 ppt (this system's highest average: not detected), PFOS 18 ppt (this system's highest average: 1.1 ppt). State compliance is judged on the state's own sampling, so ask the utility or the state program whether it meets them.
29 PFAS tested, 4 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 8 samples (reporting limit 9 ppb). About lithium.
Lead and copper
Latest 90th percentile: 7 ppb lead (Jun 2025 – Sep 2025). Below action level
Highest since 2016: 10.2 ppb (Sep 2022).
| Monitoring period | Lead (90th pct.) |
|---|---|
| Jun 2025 – Sep 2025 | 7 ppb |
| Jun 2022 – Sep 2022 | 10.2 ppb |
| Jun 2019 – Sep 2019 | 6 ppb |
Earlier results (9)
| Jun 2016 – Sep 2016 | 9 ppb |
| Jun 2013 – Sep 2013 | 6.4 ppb |
| Jan 2010 – Dec 2010 | 8.8 ppb |
| Jan 2007 – Dec 2007 | 7.8 ppb |
| Jan 2004 – Dec 2004 | 9 ppb |
| Jan 2001 – Dec 2001 | 8 ppb |
| Jan 2000 – Dec 2000 | 6 ppb |
| Jan 1999 – Jun 1999 | 0 ppb |
| Jan 1998 – Dec 1998 | 6 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
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 | 0.89 ppb | 300 ppb |
| Chromium-6 | 0.91 ppb | – |
| Chlorate | 275 ppb | 210 ppb |
| Vanadium | 0.25 ppb | 21 ppb |
| Strontium | 0.2 ppm | 1.5 ppm |
| 1,4-Dioxane | 0.11 ppb | 0.35 ppb |
Where it serves
Allentown, South Whitehall, Salisbury
ZIP codes the system reported serving: 18101, 18102, 18103, 18104, 18109
Nearby utilities
- Emmaus Borough Public Water Emmaus · 4 mi · PFAS above limit
- Whitehall Township Authority Whitehall · 5 mi · PFAS above limit
- City of Bethlehem Bethlehem · 6 mi
- Richland Township Water Authority Milford · 12 mi · PFAS above limit
- Lehigh County Authority – Wlsa Central Division Weisenberg · 12 mi · PFAS above limit
- Quakertown Borough Water System Quakertown · 13 mi · PFAS above limit
Questions
Is Allentown tap water safe to drink?
Most of Allentown gets its water from Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division. Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division has no health-based violations since 2016. EPA testing found no PFAS above the federal limits. 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 Allentown water have PFAS?
Yes. EPA's 2023–2025 testing of Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division found 4 PFAS at least once. None of the averages were above the federal limits.
What is the lead level in Allentown water?
The most recent 90th-percentile lead result for Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division is 7 ppb, for the period ending Sep 2025. 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 PA3390024: violations, enforcement and inspections, straight from EPA.
- EPA UCMR 5 data: the PFAS and lithium results (search the file for PWSID PA3390024).
- EPA SDWIS download: the lead results, population and violation records we use.
- The utility's annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report): ask Lehigh County Authority – Allentown Division at (610) 398-2503, 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.