Pembroke Water Works, NH
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2 ppb (monitoring period 2020-2022). 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 Pembroke Water Works
Pembroke Water Works serves about 5,200 people through 2,100 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 groundwater, in Merrimack County, New Hampshire. EPA system ID: NH1861010. Ask the utility on your bill for your address in their service line inventory.
Lead results over time
That is up 2 ppb from 0 ppb in the period ending 2019. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Pembroke Water Works is 2 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 2 ppb |
| 2019 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2019 | 0 (not detected) |
Against other New Hampshire systems
Of the 124 New Hampshire systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 16 ppb; 62 are over 15 ppb right now and 64 have gone over at some point. Pembroke Water Works's 2 ppb sits at the 31st percentile in New Hampshire and the 72nd nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
59 other systems share Merrimack County; 5 of them have a higher latest lead result than Pembroke Water Works. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Concord Water Dept | 44,215 | 1 ppb |
| Franklin Water Works | 7,200 | 2 ppb |
| Central Hooksett Water Pct | 4,650 | 1 ppb |
| Penacook Boscawen Water Pct | 3,800 | 0 (not detected) |
| New London Springfield Water | 3,250 | - |
| Cogswell Springs Water Works | 3,000 | - |
| Hooksett Village Water Pct | 3,000 | - |
| Tilton Northfield Water Dist | 2,500 | - |
| Pittsfield Aqueduct | 1,625 | - |
| Contoocook Village Pct | 1,600 | - |
Your move
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Pembroke, NH 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 Pembroke Water Works 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.