Albert City Muni Water Supply, IA
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 1.4 ppb (monitoring period 2024-2026). The federal action level is 15 ppb today and drops to 10 ppb in Nov 2027; EPA's health goal is 0. Lead was measured in sampled homes but the 90th percentile is under both action levels. EPA's health goal for lead is zero, so test your own tap if your home was built before 1986 or anyone in it is pregnant or a young child.
Who runs the water here
Albert City Muni Water Supply serves about 677 people through 338 service connections, which makes it a small system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws groundwater, in Buena Vista County, Iowa. EPA system ID: IA1103009; phone on file: 712-843-5613. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Albert City Muni Water Supply's lead record
Against the period ending 2023 (2 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Albert City Muni Water Supply is 4 ppb across 4 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 1.4 ppb |
| 2023 | 2 ppb |
| 2020 | 4 ppb |
| 2017 | 0 (not detected) |
Against other Iowa systems
Of the 1,066 Iowa systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.4 ppb; 4 are over 15 ppb right now and 36 have gone over at some point. Albert City Muni Water Supply's 1.4 ppb sits at the 51st percentile in Iowa and the 62nd nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Buena Vista County
10 other systems share Buena Vista County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than Albert City Muni Water Supply. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Storm Lake Water Treatment Plant | 11,431 | 0 (not detected) |
| Alta Municipal Water Plant | 2,087 | 0 (not detected) |
| Sioux Rapids Water Department | 932 | 6.5 ppb |
| Newell Water Treatment Plant | 921 | 1.1 ppb |
| Lakeside Water Supply | 700 | 0.7 ppb |
| Marathon Light & Water Department | 230 | 2 ppb |
| Rembrandt Water Supply | 209 | 0 (not detected) |
| Lake Creek Homeowners Association | 175 | 0.1 ppb |
| Linn Grove Water Works | 163 | 2.3 ppb |
| Truesdale Water Supply | 69 | 0 (not detected) |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Albert City, IA may offer free or low-cost kits through the utility. If your own line is lead, replacing the private side runs about $1,200-$12,300 (EPA average about $4,700). Ask Albert City Muni Water Supply whether it covers that cost before hiring anyone - many utilities now do.
These figures describe homes the utility sampled, not your tap. Only your service line record or a test of your own water answers the question for your house. Why sampled homes are the worst-case ones is in the guide to reading the number. Size matters more than most people expect: small vs large water systems.