Downingtown Water Authority, PA
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2 ppb (monitoring period 2025-2025). 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.
Downingtown Water Authority at a glance
Downingtown Water Authority serves about 9,900 people through 3,681 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 surface water, in Chester County, Pennsylvania. EPA system ID: PA1150026; phone on file: 610-269-5362. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Downingtown Water Authority's lead record
Against the period ending 2022 (2 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Downingtown Water Authority is 2.4 ppb across 4 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 ppb |
| 2022 | 2 ppb |
| 2019 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2016 | 2.4 ppb |
Against other Pennsylvania systems
Of the 516 Pennsylvania systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 2 ppb; 143 are over 15 ppb right now and 156 have gone over at some point. Downingtown Water Authority's 2 ppb sits at the 50th percentile in Pennsylvania and the 73rd nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Chester County
59 other systems share Chester County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than Downingtown Water Authority. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Pa American Royersford | 49,508 | 2 ppb |
| Aqua Pa West Chester | 48,600 | 0 (not detected) |
| Pa American Coatesville | 36,960 | 2 ppb |
| Aqua Pa Uwchlan | 35,518 | 2.21 ppb |
| Phoenixville Water Dept | 16,599 | 1 ppb |
| Aqua Pa Friendship | 8,800 | 0 (not detected) |
| Aqua Pa Spring Run | 8,151 | 0 (not detected) |
| Kennett Square Mun Water Works | 6,328 | 0 (not detected) |
| Oxford Borough | 5,280 | 0 (not detected) |
| London Grove Twp Mun Auth | 4,770 | 0 (not detected) |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Downingtown, PA 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 Downingtown 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. The lead result guide covers how utilities pick the homes they sample. Size matters more than most people expect: small vs large water systems.