Iron River, MI
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 1.7 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.
About Iron River
Iron River serves about 3,019 people through 1,313 service connections, which makes it a small system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws groundwater, in Iron County, Michigan. EPA system ID: MI0003410; phone on file: 906-265-4719. Ask them for your address in their service line inventory - every system had to publish one by Oct 2024.
Iron River's lead record
The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Iron River is 1.7 ppb across 1 monitoring period, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 1.7 ppb |
Where this result ranks
Of the 1,227 Michigan systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1 ppb; 31 are over 15 ppb right now and 109 have gone over at some point. Iron River's 1.7 ppb sits at the 58th percentile in Michigan and the 66th nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
14 other systems share Iron County; 7 of them have a higher latest lead result than Iron River. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Crystal Falls | 1,922 | 1.1 ppb |
| Caspian | 997 | 2 ppb |
| Crystal Falls Township - Lind | 990 | 1.8 ppb |
| Bates Township | 921 | - |
| Stambaugh Township-West Brule | 580 | - |
| Iron River Township-Beechwood | 440 | 1.4 ppb |
| Gaastra | 376 | 1.4 ppb |
| Hematite Township | 350 | 2 ppb |
| Crystal Falls Twp - Townline | 350 | 9 ppb |
| Iron River Township-Nash | 340 | 1.6 ppb |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Iron River, MI 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 Iron River 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. Systems that went over once often dip back under; here is what that means.