Salamanca City, NY
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2.6 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.
Salamanca City at a glance
Salamanca City serves about 5,815 people through 2,561 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 Cattaraugus County, New York. EPA system ID: NY0400349. Ask the utility on your bill for your address in their service line inventory.
Salamanca City's lead record
Against the period ending 2020 (2.6 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Salamanca City is 2.6 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 2.6 ppb |
| 2020 | 2.6 ppb |
| 2017 | 2 ppb |
How Salamanca City compares
Of the 2,077 New York systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.5 ppb; 17 are over 15 ppb right now and 165 have gone over at some point. Salamanca City's 2.6 ppb sits at the 68th percentile in New York and the 78th nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
44 other systems share Cattaraugus County; 12 of them have a higher latest lead result than Salamanca City. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Olean City | 14,500 | 3.5 ppb |
| Gowanda Village | 2,800 | 2.2 ppb |
| Allegany Village | 2,000 | 4.5 ppb |
| Allegany Town District #8 (St. Bonas) | 1,850 | 2.62 ppb |
| Franklinville Village | 1,760 | 1 ppb |
| Randolph Town Water District | 1,738 | 2.2 ppb |
| Ellicottville Town Water District | 1,420 | 1 ppb |
| Little Valley Village | 1,188 | 1.4 ppb |
| Cattaraugus Village | 1,185 | 1 ppb |
| Delevan Village | 1,090 | 2 ppb |
Your move
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Salamanca, NY 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 Salamanca City 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.