Black Mtn Utility/Louellen, KY
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2 ppb (monitoring period 2022-2024). 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.
About Black Mtn Utility/Louellen
Black Mtn Utility/Louellen serves about 520 people through 199 service connections, which makes it a small system under EPA's size classes. It is privately owned and draws surface water, in Harlan County, Kentucky. EPA system ID: KY0480498; phone on file: 606-505-6254. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Lead results over time
That is up 2 ppb from 0 ppb in the period ending 2021. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Black Mtn Utility/Louellen is 2 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 2 ppb |
| 2021 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2018 | 0 (not detected) |
How Black Mtn Utility/Louellen compares
Of the 367 Kentucky systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 0 ppb; 0 are over 15 ppb right now and 4 have gone over at some point. Black Mtn Utility/Louellen's 2 ppb sits at the 63rd percentile in Kentucky and the 71st nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Harlan County
14 other systems share Harlan County; 0 of them have a higher latest lead result than Black Mtn Utility/Louellen. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Harlan Municipal Water Works | 4,574 | 0 (not detected) |
| Cawood Water District | 4,428 | 0 (not detected) |
| Evarts Municipal Water Plant | 3,059 | 0 (not detected) |
| Cumberland Municipal Water Works | 2,843 | 0 (not detected) |
| Black Mtn Utility/Dayhoit | 1,954 | 0 (not detected) |
| Black Mtn Utility/Rosspoint | 1,889 | 0 (not detected) |
| Black Mtn Utility/Wallins | 1,485 | 0 (not detected) |
| Green Hills Water District | 1,443 | 0 (not detected) |
| Black Mtn Utility/Kenvir | 1,396 | 0 (not detected) |
| Lynch Water Works | 1,078 | 2 ppb |
Next steps for Baxter, KY
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Baxter, KY 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 Mtn Utility/Louellen 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.