West Branch Water Works, IA
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 3 ppb (monitoring period 2021-2023). 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 West Branch Water Works
West Branch Water Works serves about 2,509 people through 1,050 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 groundwater, in Cedar County, Iowa. EPA system ID: IA1694000; phone on file: 319-643-5888. They can tell you what your service line is made of and whether they pay to replace it.
West Branch Water Works's lead record
That is down 6 ppb from 9 ppb in the period ending 2020. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for West Branch Water Works is 9 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 3 ppb |
| 2020 | 9 ppb |
| 2017 | 3 ppb |
How West Branch Water Works compares
Of the 1,066 Iowa systems with a lead result, the median latest reading is 1.4 ppb; 4 are over 15 ppb right now and 36 have gone over at some point. West Branch Water Works's 3 ppb sits at the 76th percentile in Iowa and the 82nd nationally (higher means more lead).
Other water systems in Cedar County
12 other systems share Cedar County; 4 of them have a higher latest lead result than West Branch Water Works. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Tipton Water Supply | 3,149 | 1 ppb |
| Durant Water Supply | 1,871 | 6 ppb |
| Clarence Water Supply | 1,039 | 2 ppb |
| Mechanicsville Water Dept | 1,020 | 4 ppb |
| Lowden Water Supply | 807 | 2 ppb |
| Stanwood Water Supply | 637 | 8 ppb |
| West Branch Mhp | 400 | 2 ppb |
| Bennett Waterworks | 347 | 60 ppb |
| Yankee Grove Hoa | 64 | 2 ppb |
| Coach Road Well Association | 60 | 1 ppb |
Your move
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; West Branch, IA 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 West Branch 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. Why sampled homes are the worst-case ones is in the guide to reading the number. The action level is dropping - the 10 ppb rule from 2027.