South Milwaukee Waterworks, WI
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 7.7 ppb (monitoring period 2023-2023). 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 South Milwaukee Waterworks
South Milwaukee Waterworks serves about 21,340 people through 7,903 service connections, which makes it a large system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws surface water, in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin. EPA system ID: WI2410144. Ask the utility on your bill for your address in their service line inventory.
South Milwaukee Waterworks's lead record
That is up 2 ppb from 5.7 ppb in the period ending 2020. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for South Milwaukee Waterworks is 9.1 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 7.7 ppb |
| 2020 | 5.7 ppb |
| 2017 | 9.1 ppb |
Against other Wisconsin systems
Of the 947 Wisconsin systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.33 ppb; 6 are over 15 ppb right now and 71 have gone over at some point. South Milwaukee Waterworks's 7.7 ppb sits at the 95th percentile in Wisconsin and the 95th nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
16 other systems share Milwaukee County; 3 of them have a higher latest lead result than South Milwaukee Waterworks. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Waterworks | 626,000 | 5.3 ppb |
| West Allis Waterworks | 63,240 | 2.4 ppb |
| Wauwatosa Waterworks | 49,064 | 8.4 ppb |
| North Shore Water Commission | 35,598 | 11 ppb |
| Oak Creek Waterworks | 32,104 | 2 ppb |
| Franklin Water Utility | 22,500 | 3 ppb |
| Cudahy Waterworks | 18,659 | 13 ppb |
| Greendale Waterworks | 14,393 | 0.32 ppb |
| Whitefish Bay Waterworks | 14,272 | 4.7 ppb |
| Shorewood Waterworks | 13,535 | 3.2 ppb |
Next steps for South Milwaukee, WI
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; South Milwaukee, WI 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 Milwaukee Waterworks 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. The action level is dropping - the 10 ppb rule from 2027.