Full contaminant data, sample history, and sourcing for Jackson County. For readers who want to go beyond the summary.
Contaminant Data — All Analytes
406 well testing events on record, covering
20 analytes.
Data spans 1934 to 2025.
Contaminant
Samples
Years
Detection Rate
Distribution LowModHigh
vs. Limit
vs. TX Avg
Radon
1
2013
100%
733% of limit
↑ 1937% above
Manganese
123
1943–2017
78%
43% of limit
↓ 33% below
Chloride
81
1934–2013
100%
45% of limit
↑ 25% above
Iron
183
1942–2017
75%
28% of limit
↓ 82% below
Arsenic
103
1992–2017
48%
31% of limit
~ typical
Fluoride
363
1934–2017
100%
13% of limit
↓ 47% below
HFPO-DA (GenX)
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
Lead
103
1992–2017
1%
1% of limit
↓ 94% below
Nitrate
43
1934–2013
98%
4% of limit
↓ 82% below
Nitrite
1
2013
0%
—
—
PFHxS
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
PFNA
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
PFOA
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
PFOS
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
Sulfate
70
1934–2013
100%
7% of limit
↓ 74% below
Uranium
37
2009–2017
11%
13% of limit
~ typical
Sodium
70
1934–2013
100%
—
~ typical
pH
67
1942–2017
100%
—
~ typical
PFBS
municipal
4
2025
0%
—
—
Hardness
70
1934–2013
100%
—
~ 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 TX.
Compare your result with Jackson County
Of the 103 arsenic tests on record for Jackson County (1992–2017),
52% found none.
Of the 81 chloride tests on record for Jackson County (1934–2013),
0% found none, and half were below 112 mg/L.
Of the 363 fluoride tests on record for Jackson County (1934–2017),
0% found none, and half were below 500 µg/L.
Of the 183 iron tests on record for Jackson County (1942–2017),
25% found none, and half were below 56 µg/L.
Of the 103 lead tests on record for Jackson County (1992–2017),
99% found none.
Of the 123 manganese tests on record for Jackson County (1943–2017),
22% found none, and half were below 12.6 µg/L.
Of the 43 nitrate tests on record for Jackson County (1934–2013),
2% found none, and half were below 400 µg/L.
Of the 70 sulfate tests on record for Jackson County (1934–2013),
0% found none, and half were below 18.5 mg/L.
Of the 37 uranium tests on record for Jackson County (2009–2017),
89% found none.
Data Coverage & Gaps
Well-sampled analytes (15+ samples)
Manganese 123 samples
Chloride 81 samples
Iron 183 samples
Arsenic 103 samples
Fluoride 363 samples
Lead 103 samples
Nitrate 43 samples
Sulfate 70 samples
Uranium 37 samples
Sodium 70 samples
pH 67 samples
Hardness 70 samples
Limited data (<15 samples) — interpret with caution
Radon 1 sample
Nitrite 1 sample
No private-well PFAS data for Jackson County
We have no private well sampling data for PFAS compounds (PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and related chemicals) in Jackson County.
PFAS testing for private wells requires a dedicated lab panel (~$300–$500). If you are near a military base, airport, or industrial site, consider testing proactively. Learn more about PFAS →
Public vs. Private Water in Jackson County
21Active public water systems
15,357Residents on public water
21%Households on private wells
Public water systems in Jackson 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 Jackson 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.
This report aggregates data from the following public databases:
Water Quality Portal (WQP) — groundwater sample results for Jackson County from EPA, USGS, and state agencies. Browse WQP data →
EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) — public water system inventory used to estimate the share of residents on private wells. Browse SDWIS →
Census ACS 5-Year Estimates — well and cistern household counts (variable DP04_0074E) used to calculate the private-well percentage for Jackson County. Census data explorer →
USGS Aquifer Atlas — principal aquifer type underlying Jackson County, which informs which contaminants are geologically likely. USGS Aquifer Atlas →
EPA UCMR 5 (2023–2025) — PFAS occurrence data from public water systems, used as a proxy indicator for aquifer PFAS exposure. Rows marked "municipal" in the table above come from this source. About UCMR 5 →
EPA Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) — industrial facility chemical releases near Jackson County, used in contamination risk scoring. TRI Explorer →
EPA Superfund NPL — National Priorities List sites in or near Jackson County, used in contamination risk scoring. Superfund site search →
CDC PLACES — county-level health outcome prevalence (kidney disease, cancer, heart disease) correlated with detected contaminants. About CDC PLACES →
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 TX with at least one sample for that analyte.