Waleska, GA
Exceeded the action level in the past
Latest 90th-percentile lead: reported as 0 (not detected) (monitoring period 2025-2025). The federal action level is 15 ppb today and drops to 10 ppb in Nov 2027; EPA's health goal is 0. The latest result is under the action level, but this system has gone over 15 ppb before. Lead comes from pipes, not the source water, so a home with a lead service line can still be exposed. Test your own tap.
About Waleska
Waleska serves about 4,657 people through 1,725 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 surface water, in Cherokee County, Georgia. EPA system ID: GA0570024; phone on file: 770-479-2912. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Waleska's lead record
Against the period ending 2024 (0 ppb) the latest result is about the same. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for Waleska is 16 ppb across 7 monitoring periods, 1 of them over the 15 ppb action level.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2024 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2023 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2022 | 1.7 ppb |
| 2022 | 0 (not detected) |
| 2021 | 16 ppb over 15 |
| 2018 | 0 (not detected) |
Against other Georgia systems
Of the 1,681 Georgia systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 0.68 ppb; 15 are over 15 ppb right now and 131 have gone over at some point. Waleska's reported as 0 (not detected) sits at the 42nd percentile in Georgia and the 34th nationally (higher means more lead). Systems reporting 0 tie at the bottom, so the rank mostly reflects size among them.
Nearby utilities
8 other systems share Cherokee County; 4 of them have a higher latest lead result than Waleska. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Cherokee County | 224,427 | 1.1 ppb |
| Woodstock | 19,742 | 1.2 ppb |
| Canton | 16,375 | 0 (not detected) |
| Lake Arrowhead Subdivision | 4,617 | 1.5 ppb |
| Ball Ground | 2,470 | 0 (not detected) |
| Cherokee County-Salacoa Area | 465 | 0 (not detected) |
| Hembree Water | 270 | - |
| Murphy Mhp | 51 | 6 ppb |
Next steps for Waleska, GA
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Waleska, GA 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 Waleska 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. Why an old exceedance still matters: over the limit before, under it now.