South Chouteau County Water Dist, MT
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 2 ppb (monitoring period 2015-2017). 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.
South Chouteau County Water Dist at a glance
South Chouteau County Water Dist serves about 80 people through 24 service connections, which makes it a very small system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws groundwater, in Chouteau County, Montana. EPA system ID: MT0001925; phone on file: 406-788-8247. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Lead results over time
Against the period ending 2016 (2 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for South Chouteau County Water Dist is 2 ppb across 2 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 2 ppb |
| 2016 | 2 ppb |
Where this result ranks
Of the 753 Montana systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1 ppb; 5 are over 15 ppb right now and 28 have gone over at some point. South Chouteau County Water Dist's 2 ppb sits at the 66th percentile in Montana and the 70th nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
10 other systems share Chouteau County; 1 of them has a higher latest lead result than South Chouteau County Water Dist. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Fort Benton City Of | 1,500 | 2 ppb |
| Big Sandy Town Of | 608 | 0 (not detected) |
| Highwood County Water And Sewer District | 280 | 2 ppb |
| Geraldine Town Of | 260 | 3 ppb |
| Loma County Water District | 200 | 1 ppb |
| Carter Chouteau Co Water Dist | 150 | 0 (not detected) |
| Sunny Brook Colony | 80 | 0 (not detected) |
| Twin Hills Colony Inc | 78 | 0 (not detected) |
| North Geraldine Water System | 50 | 0 (not detected) |
| Hawarden Square Butte Water | 50 | 2 ppb |
What to do in your house
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Highwood, MT 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 South Chouteau County Water Dist 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.