Carmel Water Department, IN
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2.94 ppb (monitoring period 2021-2023). 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
Carmel Water Department serves about 99,927 people through 36,337 service connections, which makes it a large system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws surface water, in Hamilton County, Indiana. EPA system ID: IN5229004; phone on file: 317-571-4144. Ask them for your address in their service line inventory - every system had to publish one by Oct 2024.
Carmel Water Department's lead record
That is down 2.12 ppb from 5.06 ppb in the period ending 2020. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Carmel Water Department is 5.06 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 2.94 ppb |
| 2020 | 5.06 ppb |
| 2017 | 3.8 ppb |
Against other Indiana systems
Of the 687 Indiana systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.31 ppb; 6 are over 15 ppb right now and 36 have gone over at some point. Carmel Water Department's 2.94 ppb sits at the 78th percentile in Indiana and the 81st nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Hamilton County
13 other systems share Hamilton County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than Carmel Water Department. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Citizens Water Of Westfield, Llc | 61,493 | 3.09 ppb |
| Indiana American Water - Noblesville | 45,575 | 3 ppb |
| Cicero Water Department | 5,607 | 6.99 ppb |
| Indiana American Water - Sheridan | 4,435 | 2 ppb |
| Arcadia Water Department | 1,515 | 1.13 ppb |
| Atlanta Water Department | 735 | - |
| Carmel Clay Water | 393 | 0 (not detected) |
| Suburban Estates, Llc | 350 | 0 (not detected) |
| Hamilton County Regional Utility | 125 | 0 (not detected) |
| Indiana Academy | 113 | 2.2 ppb |
Next steps for Carmel, IN
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Carmel, IN 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 Carmel Water Department 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.