West Okoboji, IA
Lead detected, under the action levels
Latest 90th-percentile lead: 4 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.
West Okoboji at a glance
West Okoboji serves about 308 people through 351 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 Dickinson County, Iowa. EPA system ID: IA3090081; phone on file: 712-332-1244. Call that number and ask whether your address has a lead, galvanized or unknown service line.
Lead results over time
That is up 2 ppb from 2 ppb in the period ending 2020. The highest 90th-percentile result EPA holds for West Okoboji is 4 ppb across 3 monitoring periods, none of them over 15 ppb.
| Period ending | 90th-percentile lead |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 4 ppb |
| 2020 | 2 ppb |
| 2017 | 0 (not detected) |
Against other Iowa systems
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 Okoboji's 4 ppb sits at the 83rd percentile in Iowa and the 87th nationally (higher means more lead).
Nearby utilities
9 other systems share Dickinson County; 0 of them have a higher latest lead result than West Okoboji. If you are unsure which one supplies your house, the name on your water bill decides it.
| System | People | Latest lead |
|---|---|---|
| Spirit Lake Waterworks | 6,167 | 1 ppb |
| Milford Municipal Utilities | 3,431 | 2 ppb |
| Lake Park Municipal Utilities | 1,167 | 4 ppb |
| Arnolds Park Water Department | 1,113 | 2 ppb |
| Okoboji Water Supply | 776 | 1 ppb |
| Wahpeton Water Supply | 408 | 0 (not detected) |
| Terril Municipal Waterworks | 334 | 1 ppb |
| Superior Water System | 135 | 0 (not detected) |
| Central Water System | 25 | - |
Next steps for Milford, IA
Test your own tap with a certified lab first-draw sample; Milford, 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 Okoboji 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.