Buffalo Water Authority, NY
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 3 ppb (monitoring period 2026-2026). 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.
About Buffalo Water Authority
Buffalo Water Authority serves about 276,000 people through 80,000 service connections, which makes it a very large system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws surface water, in Erie County, New York. EPA system ID: NY1400422; phone on file: 716-851-4766. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Lead results over time
Against the period ending 2025 (3 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Buffalo Water Authority is 4.9 ppb across 8 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 ppb |
| 2025 | 3 ppb |
| 2025 | 3 ppb |
| 2024 | 4.7 ppb |
| 2024 | 3 ppb |
| 2023 | 3 ppb |
| 2020 | 4.9 ppb |
| 2017 | 4.5 ppb |
Where this result ranks
Of the 2,077 New York systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.5 ppb; 17 are over 15 ppb right now and 165 have gone over at some point. Buffalo Water Authority's 3 ppb sits at the 75th percentile in New York and the 83rd nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Erie County
43 other systems share Erie County; 16 of them have a higher latest lead result than Buffalo Water Authority. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Ecwa Direct | 313,380 | 6 ppb |
| Ecwa Amherst | 92,697 | 9.85 ppb |
| Tonawanda, Town Water Dept. | 72,571 | 2.1 ppb |
| Ecwa Lancaster | 29,018 | 9.85 ppb |
| Ecwa Orchard Park | 24,582 | 9.85 ppb |
| Ecwa West Seneca | 23,557 | 9.85 ppb |
| Grand Island Town Water Dept. | 19,500 | 1.13 ppb |
| Kenmore Village | 15,423 | 2.1 ppb |
| Ecwa Evans | 12,338 | 7.8 ppb |
| Elma Water District No. 1 | 10,287 | 1.6 ppb |
Next steps for Buffalo, NY
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Buffalo, NY 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 Buffalo Water Authority 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. The action level is dropping - the 10 ppb rule from 2027.