Terra Alta Water Works, WV
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 3.1 ppb (monitoring period 2023-2025). 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.
Terra Alta Water Works at a glance
Terra Alta Water Works serves about 1,856 people through 778 service connections, which makes it a small system under EPA's size classes. It is owned by a local government (city, town, county or district) and draws surface water, in Preston County, West Virginia. EPA system ID: WV3303917; phone on file: 304-789-6664. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
Terra Alta Water Works's lead record
Against the period ending 2023 (3.1 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Terra Alta Water Works is 6.7 ppb across 7 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 3.1 ppb |
| 2023 | 3.1 ppb |
| 2022 | 1.7 ppb |
| 2020 | 1.7 ppb |
| 2019 | 6.7 ppb |
| 2017 | 6.7 ppb |
| 2016 | 1.1 ppb |
Against other West Virginia systems
Of the 408 West Virginia systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 0.9 ppb; 4 are over 15 ppb right now and 20 have gone over at some point. Terra Alta Water Works's 3.1 ppb sits at the 86th percentile in West Virginia and the 83rd nationally (higher means more lead).
Neighbouring systems
10 other systems share Preston County; 2 of them have a higher latest lead result than Terra Alta Water Works. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Preston County Psd 4 | 8,753 | 5.2 ppb |
| Kingwood Water Board | 7,674 | 1.5 ppb |
| Masontown Water Works | 2,239 | 0 (not detected) |
| Tunnelton Town Of | 1,346 | 1 ppb |
| Alpine Lake Public Utilities | 1,325 | 0.54 ppb |
| Newburg Town Of | 1,133 | 0.76 ppb |
| Rowlesburg Water Works | 680 | 0.52 ppb |
| Albright Town Of | 334 | 1 ppb |
| Arthurdale Water Assoc. | 264 | 3.7 ppb |
| Alyeska Inc | 50 | 0.5 ppb |
Next steps for Terra Alta, WV
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Terra Alta, WV 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 Terra Alta Water 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. Size matters more than most people expect: small vs large water systems.