Philomath Public Works, OR
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 3.3 ppb (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. 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.
Who runs the water here
Philomath Public Works serves about 4,670 people through 1,858 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 Benton County, Oregon. EPA system ID: OR4100624; phone on file: 541-929-3579. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
Every lead result on file
Against the period ending 2021 (4.1 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Philomath Public Works is 4.1 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 3.3 ppb |
| 2021 | 4.1 ppb |
| 2018 | 3 ppb |
Against other Oregon systems
Of the 909 Oregon systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1 ppb; 15 are over 15 ppb right now and 71 have gone over at some point. Philomath Public Works's 3.3 ppb sits at the 81st percentile in Oregon and the 84th nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Benton County
14 other systems share Benton County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than Philomath Public Works. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Corvallis, City Of | 61,468 | 1.9 ppb |
| Adair Village Water System | 875 | 1.9 ppb |
| Monroe, City Of | 723 | 1.5 ppb |
| Knoll Terrace Park | 452 | 1.1 ppb |
| Vineyard Mountain Water | 325 | 4.56 ppb |
| Alsea County Service District | 202 | 3.2 ppb |
| Fir View Water Company | 150 | 4.2 ppb |
| Columbia Place Llc | 125 | 0 (not detected) |
| Cascade View Estates | 113 | 0 (not detected) |
| North Corvallis Mhp-Well #1 | 100 | 6.4 ppb |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Philomath, OR 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 Philomath Public 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. 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.