Data & Methodology — Susquehanna County

Full contaminant data, sample history, and sourcing for Susquehanna County. For readers who want to go beyond the summary.

Contaminant Data — All Analytes

206 well testing events on record, covering 22 analytes. Data spans 1930 to 2024.

Contaminant Samples Years Detection Rate Distribution LowModHigh vs. Limit vs. PA Avg
Radon 9 2015–2022 100%
337% of limit ↑ 160% above
Manganese 129 1955–2023 91%
120% of limit ↓ 76% below
Iron 136 1930–2023 89%
38% of limit ↓ 94% below
Arsenic 53 1973–2023 70%
7% of limit ↓ 76% below
Chloride 143 1930–2023 100%
1% of limit ↓ 87% below
Fluoride 112 1955–2023 98%
3% of limit ↓ 38% below
HFPO-DA (GenX) municipal 79 2023–2025 0%
— —
Lead 54 1973–2023 35%
2% of limit ↓ 67% below
Nitrate 139 1930–2023 79%
3% of limit ↓ 82% below
Nitrite 110 1982–2023 7%
1% of limit ↓ 33% below
PFHxS municipal 8 2023–2025 0%
— —
PFNA municipal 8 2023–2025 0%
— —
PFOA municipal 101 2023–2025 2%
50% of limit ↓ 47% below
PFOS municipal 101 2023–2025 6%
48% of limit ↓ 63% below
Sulfate 143 1930–2023 99%
4% of limit ↓ 77% below
Uranium 38 2014–2022 87%
3% of limit ~ typical
E. coli 6 2007–2022 14%
— ~ typical
Hardness 143 1930–2023 100%
— ↓ 38% below
PFBS municipal 79 2023–2025 5%
— ↓ 48% below
pH 135 1955–2023 100%
— ~ typical
Sodium 134 1930–2023 100%
— ↓ 26% below
Total Coliform 6 2007–2022 43%
— ~ typical

Distribution shows the share of samples in each concentration band relative to the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL): Low = below half the MCL, Moderate = between half and the MCL, High = above the MCL. Analytes without an MCL (e.g. sodium, pH) show — in the limit columns. State average is based on county median values across PA.

Compare your result with Susquehanna County

Of the 53 arsenic tests on record for Susquehanna County (1973–2023), 30% found none, and half were below 0.52 µg/L.

Of the 143 chloride tests on record for Susquehanna County (1930–2023), 0% found none, and half were below 3.38 mg/L.

Of the 112 fluoride tests on record for Susquehanna County (1955–2023), 2% found none, and half were below 105 µg/L.

Of the 136 iron tests on record for Susquehanna County (1930–2023), 11% found none, and half were below 90 µg/L.

Of the 54 lead tests on record for Susquehanna County (1973–2023), 65% found none.

Of the 129 manganese tests on record for Susquehanna County (1955–2023), 9% found none, and half were below 50 µg/L.

Of the 139 nitrate tests on record for Susquehanna County (1930–2023), 21% found none, and half were below 100 µg/L.

Of the 93 pfoa tests on record for Susquehanna County (2025), 98% found none.

Of the 93 pfos tests on record for Susquehanna County (2025), 94% found none.

Of the 143 sulfate tests on record for Susquehanna County (1930–2023), 1% found none, and half were below 10 mg/L.

Of the 38 uranium tests on record for Susquehanna County (2014–2022), 13% found none, and half were below 0.806 µg/L.

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Data Coverage & Gaps

Well-sampled analytes (15+ samples)

  • Manganese 129 samples
  • Iron 136 samples
  • Arsenic 53 samples
  • Chloride 143 samples
  • Fluoride 112 samples
  • HFPO-DA (GenX) 79 samples
  • Lead 54 samples
  • Nitrate 139 samples
  • Nitrite 110 samples
  • PFOA 101 samples
  • PFOS 101 samples
  • Sulfate 143 samples
  • Uranium 38 samples
  • Hardness 143 samples
  • PFBS 79 samples
  • pH 135 samples
  • Sodium 134 samples

Limited data (<15 samples) — interpret with caution

  • Radon 9 samples
  • E. coli 6 samples
  • Total Coliform 6 samples

Public vs. Private Water in Susquehanna County

115 Active public water systems
29,612 Residents on public water
76% Households on private wells

Public water systems in Susquehanna County are regulated by the EPA and must test and report contaminant levels. Private well owners are responsible for their own testing — there is no routine monitoring of private wells by any government agency.

CDC Health Outcome Correlations

Where contaminants detected in Susquehanna County have established associations with specific health outcomes, we cross-reference CDC PLACES county-level prevalence data. This is a contextual signal, not a causal claim.

Contaminant Associated Condition Susquehanna County Prevalence PA Average Source Year
Arsenic Cancer incidence rate 453.6% 448.6% 2022
Arsenic Cancer prevalence 6.1% 7.0% 2020
Arsenic Kidney disease rate 2.7% 3.0% 2020

Source: CDC PLACES county-level estimates. Raw data: Download Susquehanna County CDC PLACES data →

Data Sources

This report aggregates data from the following public databases:

Methodology

Raw records are downloaded from the Water Quality Portal and normalized to µg/L (ppb). Records are deduplicated by sample ID and date, and certified outliers are excluded. Analyte names are mapped to EPA canonical forms. Detection rates, distribution bands, and MCL comparisons are computed from the normalized dataset.

Distribution bands use the EPA Maximum Contaminant Level as the threshold: concentrations below 50% of the MCL are classed as Low, between 50% and 100% as Moderate, and above 100% as High. For analytes without an MCL (sodium, hardness, pH), distribution is not computed.

State comparison uses the median of county median values across all counties in PA with at least one sample for that analyte.

Last updated: 2026-08-04

Full methodology →