Stratford, SD
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 1 ppb (monitoring period 2024-2024). 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.
Stratford at a glance
Stratford serves about 57 people through 47 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 surface water, in Brown County, South Dakota. EPA system ID: SD4600408. Ask the utility on your bill for your address in their service line inventory.
Lead results over time
Against the period ending 2022 (1 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Stratford is 5 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2024 | 1 ppb |
| 2022 | 1 ppb |
| 2018 | 5 ppb |
Against other South Dakota systems
Of the 458 South Dakota systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 2 ppb; 0 are over 15 ppb right now and 6 have gone over at some point. Stratford's 1 ppb sits at the 14th percentile in South Dakota and the 51st nationally (higher means more lead).
Nearby utilities
19 other systems share Brown County; 9 of them have a higher latest lead result than Stratford. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | 27,989 | 3 ppb |
| Groton | 1,380 | 3 ppb |
| Warner | 485 | 1 ppb |
| Lakeside Estates | 460 | 1 ppb |
| Country Village Park | 340 | 1 ppb |
| Prairiewood Property Owners | 300 | 1 ppb |
| Frederick | 215 | 2 ppb |
| Hecla | 200 | 2 ppb |
| Jobee Acres | 108 | 2 ppb |
| Claremont | 108 | 6 ppb |
Next steps for Stratford, SD
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Stratford, SD 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 Stratford 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.