Elk Bend Unit 1, ID
Exceeded the action level in the past
Latest 90th-percentile lead: reported as 0 (not detected) (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. The latest result is under the action level, but this system has gone over 15 ppb before. Lead comes from pipes, not the source water, so a home with a lead service line can still be exposed. Test your own tap.
Elk Bend Unit 1 at a glance
Elk Bend Unit 1 serves about 200 people through 122 service connections, which makes it a very small system under EPA's size classes. It is privately owned and draws groundwater, in Lemhi County, Idaho. EPA system ID: ID7300013; phone on file: 208-756-7179. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
Lead results over time
That is down 5 ppb from 5 ppb in the period ending 2021. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Elk Bend Unit 1 is 16 ppb across 8 monitoring periods, 1 of them over the 15 ppb action level.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2021 | 5 ppb |
| 2020 | 3 ppb |
| 2019 | 2 ppb |
| 2018 | 1 ppb |
| 2017 | 3 ppb |
| 2017 | 11.5 ppb over 10 |
| 2016 | 16 ppb over 15 |
Against other Idaho systems
Of the 763 Idaho systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1 ppb; 3 are over 15 ppb right now and 46 have gone over at some point. Elk Bend Unit 1's reported as 0 (not detected) sits at the 24th percentile in Idaho and the 15th nationally (higher means more lead). Systems reporting 0 tie at the bottom, so the rank mostly reflects size among them.
Other water systems in Lemhi County
4 other systems share Lemhi County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than Elk Bend Unit 1. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Salmon City Of | 3,158 | 6 ppb |
| Sunset Heights Water District | 65 | 1 ppb |
| Valley View Heights | 65 | 0 (not detected) |
| Salmon River Meadows Mutual Water Compan | 47 | 9 ppb |
Next steps for Salmon, ID
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Salmon, ID 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 Elk Bend Unit 1 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. Why an old exceedance still matters: over the limit before, under it now.