Access to clean drinking water is important for every Mainer. The Maine CDC Drinking Water Program is dedicated to ensuring the water you receive from public water systems is safe. To better understand the quality of the water provided by public water systems, the MaineTracking Network released a set of interactive dashboards that display a range of information, such as PFAS testing results, lead in school water testing results, and 25 years of testing data for select contaminants. MaineTracking Network displays the data on point maps and allows you to download the raw data for your own analysis, for instance using a custom table or your own data visualization tool.
PFAS
In response to the emerging public health concern of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or ‘forever chemicals’, the Maine legislature mandated the Maine CDC Drinking Water Program sample public water supplies for multiple PFAS. The data, previously only available in static PDFs on the website, is now accessible in an interactive map at the MaineTracking Network. You can use the map to see PFAS test data, by location and over time, from 383 community water systems and 272 schools and daycares gathered between August 2021 and October 2024.
Maine currently has an interim standard of 20 parts per trillion (ppt) for the combined sum of six different PFAS (PFOA, PFOS, PFHpA, PFNA, PFDA, PFHxS). If your water has more than 20 ppt for the sum of these six PFAS, the system will take action to reduce the amount of contaminated water you are drinking. It does not necessarily mean you will have health problems. Learn more about possible health effects.
For community systems, according to the most recent sample results, 81% of systems found no detectable levels, 16% found levels at or below the state limit of 20 ppt, and 3% of systems found levels above that threshold.
The Maine CDC Drinking Water Program has a number of funding programs available to help public water systems address PFAS. Learn more about different grant options.
Lead
While dust from old paint is the most common source of lead exposure, old or corroded lead plumbing can contribute to elevated levels of lead in drinking water. In 2019, the Maine legislature mandated all K-12 schools in Maine test their drinking water for lead. Schools sampled their drinking water taps for lead between August 2021 and June 2023. Maine schools conducted first draw tests to tell if lead is dissolving into the water from pipes or fixtures, rather than to tell how much lead someone is being exposed to.
The new interactive dashboard of lead in school water data shows lead concentrations for every faucet or tap that was tested by the school. Maps show the average concentration of all samples taken at a school. Although there is no level of lead in drinking water that is deemed safe, it is recommended that schools stop using all fixtures with lead concentrations of 4 ppb or higher. To learn about the actions schools have taken to reduce lead in water, reach out to your local school department.
Selected Contaminants
All public water systems are required to regularly sample and test their water to ensure it meets federal and state drinking water standards. Timely sampling and testing ensure the water served to customers is safe. The MaineTracking Network presents data for the following contaminants:
- Arsenic
- Disinfection byproducts
- Nitrates
- Radium
- Uranium
- PCE
- TCE
- DEHP
- Atrazine
Data are available at the state level in maps and trend charts. You can visualize levels of a certain contaminant over the years for your town, county, or just your public water system. If you don’t know the name of your public water supply, you can look up data by principal town served.