Black Hawk Water User District, SD
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2 ppb (monitoring period 2023-2023). 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
Black Hawk Water User District serves about 4,500 people through 1,538 service connections, which makes it a medium-sized system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws groundwater, in Meade County, South Dakota. EPA system ID: SD4600043; phone on file: 6057875777. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
Lead results over time
Against the period ending 2020 (2 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Black Hawk Water User District is 4 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 2 ppb |
| 2020 | 2 ppb |
| 2017 | 4 ppb |
Against other South Dakota systems
Of the 458 South Dakota systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 2 ppb; 0 are over 15 ppb right now and 6 have gone over at some point. Black Hawk Water User District's 2 ppb sits at the 70th percentile in South Dakota and the 72nd nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
41 other systems share Meade County; 11 of them have a higher latest lead result than Black Hawk Water User District. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Sturgis | 7,020 | 2 ppb |
| Piedmont | 971 | 3 ppb |
| Bear Butte Valley Water | 882 | 1 ppb |
| Fort Meade Va Center | 800 | 8 ppb |
| Wonderland Homes | 750 | 2 ppb |
| Sun Valley Development | 650 | 6 ppb |
| Weston Heights Homeowners Associatio | 412 | 7 ppb |
| Faith | 367 | 1 ppb |
| Blucksberg Mountain #2 | 333 | 9 ppb |
| Stagebarn Sanitary District | 295 | 1 ppb |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Black Hawk, SD 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 Black Hawk Water User District 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. The lead result guide covers how utilities pick the homes they sample. Size matters more than most people expect: small vs large water systems.