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Updated 2026-10-15
County water report

New Castle County Water Quality: 5 Cities Ranked by the Records

New Castle County, Delaware: 5 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 New Castle 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 4 systems of 5 tested4.0 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest25.3 ng/L
Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS)Detected in 2 systems of 5 tested4.0 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest7.5 ng/L
Perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)Detected in 1 system of 5 tested10 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest11.6 ng/L
Perfluorohexanesulfonic acid (PFHxS)Detected in 2 systems of 5 tested10 ng/L federal MCL (2024) · US EPAHighest8.9 ng/L
Lead (90th percentile)Detected in 3 systems of 5 tested15 µg/L federal action level · US EPAHighest2 µg/L
Perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS)Detected in 4 systems of 5 tested2,000 ng/L EPA health advisory (screening, not a legal limit) · US EPAHighest8.7 ng/L
Perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHxA)Detected in 4 systems of 5 tested400,000 ng/L Michigan EGLE state MCL (strictest US state) · Michigan EGLEHighest72.2 ng/L
Perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA)Detected in 4 systems of 5 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest79.1 ng/L
4 more contaminants detectedShow
Perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA)Detected in 1 system of 5 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest4.7 ng/L
Perfluoroheptanoic acid (PFHpA)Detected in 4 systems of 5 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest27.7 ng/L
Perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA)Detected in 4 systems of 5 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest106 ng/L
Perfluoroundecanoic acid (PFUnA)Detected in 1 system of 5 testedNo federal or state limit; shown for transparencyHighest3.8 ng/L
19 substances tested, none detected in any systemShow

Tested in these 5 systems: ARTESIAN WATER COMPANY, MIDDLETOWN WATER DEPARTMENT, NEWARK WATER DEPARTMENT, VEOLIA WATER DELAWARE, INC, WILMINGTON 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
  • 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)
  • Perfluorododecanoic acid (PFDoA)
  • Perfluoroheptanesulfonic acid (PFHpS)
  • Perfluoropentanesulfonic acid (PFPeS)
  • Perfluorotetradecanoic acid (PFTA)
  • Perfluorotridecanoic acid (PFTrDA)
5 cities

Cities ranked by the records

Showing 5 of 5 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 New Castle County4 of 5 city reports had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit
  1. Newark7.5 ng/L
  2. Bear6 ng/L
4.0 ng/L federal MCL · PFOS, ng/LPFAS in Delaware
Lead

0of 5 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 Delaware
Who supplies the county

Largest water systems

  1. BearARTESIAN WATER COMPANY · DE0000552
    231,114 served
  2. WilmingtonWILMINGTON WATER DEPARTMENT · DE0000663
    107,976 served
  3. BrooksideVEOLIA WATER DELAWARE, INC · DE0000564
    100,495 served
  4. NewarkNEWARK WATER DEPARTMENT · DE0000630
    40,000 served
  5. MiddletownMIDDLETOWN WATER DEPARTMENT · DE0000614
    17,700 served
Questions

Frequently asked

How does New Castle County tap water compare across cities?

PurityMap ranks 5 cities in New Castle 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 Middletown's main water system: MIDDLETOWN WATER DEPARTMENT · PWSID DE0000614 · Purity Score 100 (Excellent) · 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 New Castle County cities had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit?

4 of 5 New Castle County city reports had a PFAS sample above a 2024 EPA limit in EPA's UCMR 5 testing, including Newark (PFOA 25.3 ng/L), Brookside (PFOA 24.4 ng/L), Bear (PFOA 23.1 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 4.

Is there lead in New Castle County tap water?

Utilities report lead as a 90th-percentile result from home taps. 3 of 5 New Castle 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.

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