Full contaminant data, sample history, and sourcing for Lee County. For readers who want to go beyond the summary.
Contaminant Data — All Analytes
270 well testing events on record, covering
20 analytes.
Data spans 1944 to 2024.
Contaminant
Samples
Years
Detection Rate
Distribution LowModHigh
vs. Limit
vs. TX Avg
Iron
153
1944–2020
77%
41% of limit
↓ 73% below
Manganese
101
1964–2020
82%
56% of limit
~ typical
Sulfate
43
1944–2011
100%
33% of limit
~ typical
Chloride
43
1944–2011
100%
21% of limit
↓ 41% below
Nitrate
46
1944–2011
65%
6% of limit
↓ 74% below
Arsenic
74
1993–2020
5%
3% of limit
↓ 92% below
Fluoride
239
1944–2020
96%
5% of limit
↓ 79% below
HFPO-DA (GenX)
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
Lead
74
1993–2020
8%
4% of limit
↓ 78% below
Nitrite
4
2008–2011
25%
0% of limit
↓ 90% below
PFHxS
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
PFNA
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
PFOA
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
PFOS
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
Radon
2
2008
100%
6% of limit
↓ 84% below
Uranium
26
2008–2020
4%
0% of limit
↓ 100% below
Sodium
42
1944–2011
100%
—
↓ 33% below
pH
41
1953–2011
100%
—
~ typical
PFBS
municipal
20
2023–2025
0%
—
—
Hardness
42
1944–2011
100%
—
↓ 56% below
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 Lee County
Of the 74 arsenic tests on record for Lee County (1993–2020),
95% found none.
Of the 43 chloride tests on record for Lee County (1944–2011),
0% found none, and half were below 53 mg/L.
Of the 239 fluoride tests on record for Lee County (1944–2020),
4% found none, and half were below 200 µg/L.
Of the 153 iron tests on record for Lee County (1944–2020),
23% found none, and half were below 93 µg/L.
Of the 74 lead tests on record for Lee County (1993–2020),
92% found none.
Of the 101 manganese tests on record for Lee County (1964–2020),
18% found none, and half were below 11.4 µg/L.
Of the 46 nitrate tests on record for Lee County (1944–2011),
35% found none, and half were below 200 µg/L.
Of the 43 sulfate tests on record for Lee County (1944–2011),
0% found none, and half were below 82 mg/L.
Of the 26 uranium tests on record for Lee County (2008–2020),
96% found none.
Data Coverage & Gaps
Well-sampled analytes (15+ samples)
Iron 153 samples
Manganese 101 samples
Sulfate 43 samples
Chloride 43 samples
Nitrate 46 samples
Arsenic 74 samples
Fluoride 239 samples
Lead 74 samples
Uranium 26 samples
Sodium 42 samples
pH 41 samples
Hardness 42 samples
Limited data (<15 samples) — interpret with caution
Nitrite 4 samples
Radon 2 samples
No private-well PFAS data for Lee County
We have no private well sampling data for PFAS compounds (PFOA, PFOS, PFNA, and related chemicals) in Lee 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 Lee County
7Active public water systems
26,350Residents on public water
6%Households on private wells
Public water systems in Lee 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 Lee 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 Lee 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 Lee County. Census data explorer →
USGS Aquifer Atlas — principal aquifer type underlying Lee 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 Lee County, used in contamination risk scoring. TRI Explorer →
EPA Superfund NPL — National Priorities List sites in or near Lee 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.