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Updated 2026-10-15
County water report

Essex County Water Quality: 10 Cities Ranked by the Records

Essex County, New Jersey: 10 city reports built from EPA and utility records. A county has many suppliers; each city shows the system that serves it.

Find my systemOpen on the mapPrivate wells in Essex County
Across the county's systems

Highest result for each contaminant

One row per contaminant: the highest result any system in the county reported, against its limit. Open a row for the systems behind it.

Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)Detected in 7 systems of 9 tested4.0 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest44.5 ng/L
Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)Detected in 3 systems of 9 tested4.0 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest12.2 ng/L
Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)Detected in 3 systems of 9 tested10 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest13.3 ng/L
Lead (90th percentile)Detected in 7 systems of 10 tested15 µg/L federal action level · US EPAHighest4.03 µg/L
Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)Detected in 1 system of 9 tested2,000 ng/L EPA health advisory (screening, not a legal limit) · US EPAHighest5.4 ng/L
Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)Detected in 4 systems of 9 tested400,000 ng/L Michigan EGLE state MCL (strictest US state) · Michigan EGLEHighest6.2 ng/L
Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA)Detected in 3 systems of 9 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest6.4 ng/L
Perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)Detected in 1 system of 9 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest4.9 ng/L
1 more contaminant detectedShow
Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)Detected in 5 systems of 9 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest6.7 ng/L
22 substances tested, none detected in any systemShow

Tested in these 9 systems: BELLEVILLE WATER DEPT, BLOOMFIELD WATER DEPARTMENT, CEDAR GROVE WATER DEPT, EAST ORANGE WATER COMMISSION, NEWARK WATER DEPARTMENT, ORANGE WATER DEPT, SOUTH ORANGE WATER DEPARTMENT, VERONA WATER DEPARTMENT, WEST CALDWELL WATER DEPARTMENT

  • 11-Chloroeicosafluoro-3-oxaundecane-1-sulfonic acid (11Cl-PF3OUdS)
  • 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluorodecane sulfonic acid (8:2 FTS)
  • 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (4:2 FTS)
  • 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (6:2 FTS)
  • 4,8-Dioxa-3H-perfluorononanoic acid (ADONA)
  • 9-Chlorohexadecafluoro-3-oxanone-1-sulfonic acid (9Cl-PF3ONS)
  • Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid (HFPO-DA) (GenX chemicals)
  • Lithium

    Also tested in: NUTLEY WATER DEPT

  • N-ethyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoacetic acid (NEtFOSAA)
  • N-methyl perfluorooctanesulfonamidoacetic acid (NMeFOSAA)
  • Nonafluoro-3,6-dioxaheptanoic acid (NFDHA)
  • Perfluoro (2-ethoxyethane) sulfonic acid (PFEESA)
  • Perfluoro-3-methoxypropanoic acid (PFMPA)
  • Perfluoro-4-methoxybutanoic acid (PFMBA)
  • Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA)
  • Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA)
  • Perfluoroheptanesulfonic acid (PFHpS)
  • Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)
  • Perfluoropentanesulfonic acid (PFPeS)
  • Perfluorotetradecanoic acid (PFTA)
  • Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA)
  • Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnA)
10 cities

Cities ranked by the records

Showing 6 of 10 cities · scores are system-level, not tap tests

Ranked by the Purity Score of each city's main water system, highest first. Scores belong to water systems; there is no county score. The score is computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record, so this ranks the record, not which city's water is safest. How the score works.

PFAS in Essex County7 of 10 city reports had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit
  1. Verona12.2 ng/L
  2. Caldwell5.5 ng/L
  3. Cedar Grove4 ng/L
4.0 ng/L federal MCL · PFOS, ng/LPFAS in New Jersey
Lead

0of 10 cities above the 15 µg/L action level

Based on each system's 90th-percentile result. Lead from household plumbing isn't in this record.

Lead in New Jersey
Who supplies the county

Largest water systems

  1. NewarkNEWARK WATER DEPARTMENT · NJ0714001
    294,274 served
  2. East OrangeEAST ORANGE WATER COMMISSION · NJ0705001
    75,000 served
  3. BloomfieldBLOOMFIELD WATER DEPARTMENT · NJ0702001
    53,315 served
  4. BellevilleBELLEVILLE WATER DEPT · NJ0701001
    35,129 served
  5. OrangeORANGE WATER DEPT · NJ0717001
    30,134 served
  6. NutleyNUTLEY WATER DEPT · NJ0716001
    29,500 served
  7. South OrangeSOUTH ORANGE WATER DEPARTMENT · NJ0719001
    16,964 served
  8. VeronaVERONA WATER DEPARTMENT · NJ0720001
    13,641 served
  9. Cedar GroveCEDAR GROVE WATER DEPT · NJ0704001
    12,900 served
  10. CaldwellWEST CALDWELL WATER DEPARTMENT · NJ0721001
    10,759 served
Questions

Frequently asked

How does Essex County tap water compare across cities?

PurityMap ranks 10 cities in Essex County by the Purity Score of each city's main water system, computed only from contaminants measured in the published EPA record. Scores belong to water systems, not to cities. The highest published score is Bloomfield's main water system: BLOOMFIELD WATER DEPARTMENT · PWSID NJ0702001 · Purity Score 84 (Good) · Confidence: moderate · Assessed at the water-system level. The ranking compares the records, not which city's water is safest, and your own tap can differ with household plumbing.

How many Essex County cities had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit?

7 of 10 Essex County city reports had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit in EPA's UCMR 5 testing, including Verona (PFOA 44.5 ng/L), East Orange (PFOA 13 ng/L), Orange (PFOA 13 ng/L). That limit is judged on a yearly average, and water systems have until 2029 to meet it, so a single sample is not a violation. PFAS were detected at any level in 7.

Is there lead in Essex County tap water?

Utilities report lead as a 90th-percentile result from home taps. 7 of 10 Essex County cities reported a value above zero, and none was above the 15 µg/L federal action level. Lead usually comes from a building's own pipes and fixtures, so only a test at your tap tells you what you drink.

Have Essex County water systems had drinking-water violations?

1 city in Essex County has a health-based violation in the federal SDWIS record within about the last ten years. Each city report lists the contaminant, year and whether it was resolved.

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