Helena Utility District, MS
Exceeded the action level in the past
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 1.6 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. 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.
Who runs the water here
Helena Utility District serves about 497 people through 135 service connections, which makes it a very small system under EPA's size classes. It is under mixed public and private ownership and draws surface water, in Jackson County, Mississippi. EPA system ID: MS0300163; phone on file: 228-475-6600. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Lead results over time
That is down 1.7 ppb from 3.3 ppb in the period ending 2024. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Helena Utility District is 39.1 ppb across 14 monitoring periods, 3 of them over the 15 ppb action level.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 1.6 ppb |
| 2024 | 3.3 ppb |
| 2024 | 0.8 ppb |
| 2023 | 1.5 ppb |
| 2023 | 3 ppb |
| 2022 | 0.6 ppb |
| 2022 | 26.5 ppb over 15 |
| 2021 | 0.7 ppb |
| 2018 | 0.5 ppb |
| 2018 | 0.8 ppb |
| 2017 | 12.1 ppb over 10 |
| 2017 | 16.7 ppb over 15 |
| 2016 | 39.1 ppb over 15 |
| 2016 | 11.6 ppb over 10 |
How Helena Utility District compares
Of the 973 Mississippi systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1 ppb; 9 are over 15 ppb right now and 44 have gone over at some point. Helena Utility District's 1.6 ppb sits at the 70th percentile in Mississippi and the 65th nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Jackson County
10 other systems share Jackson County; 2 of them have a higher latest lead result than Helena Utility District. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| West Jackson Co Utility Dist | 28,544 | 2.6 ppb |
| City Of Ocean Springs | 26,168 | 2 ppb |
| City Of Pascagoula | 22,686 | 1.2 ppb |
| City Of Gautier | 22,253 | 1.5 ppb |
| City Of Moss Point | 12,524 | 0.5 ppb |
| Jackson Co Utility Authority-East | 6,270 | 1.4 ppb |
| Jackson Co Utility Authority-West | 6,178 | 1.1 ppb |
| Colonial Estates # 3 | 140 | 0.31 ppb |
| Jackson Co Utility Authority-Helena Park | 108 | 0 (not detected) |
| Krebs Trailer Plaza | 33 | 0 (not detected) |
Your move
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Escatawpa, MS 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 Helena Utility District 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. More in what a past exceedance means today.