Public water system · CO0138045

Active

Sterling City of

At a glance

City of Sterling (PWSID CO0138045) is an active community water system in Logan County, Colorado. It reports serving 15,100 people through 4,655 service connections. Its primary water source is groundwater under influence of surface water, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in August 2023.

Dataset updated October 2026 . Source: EPA SDWIS/ECHO public records.

Population served

15,100

Service connections

4,655

Primary source

Groundwater under influence of surface water

System type

CWS

Community water system

System record

PWSIDCO0138045

System typeCommunity water system

Activity statusActive

Population served15,100

Service connections4,655

Primary water sourceGroundwater under influence of surface water

Owner typeLocal government

Primacy agencyCO state drinking water program

City served—

StateColorado

ZIP—

CountyLogan County

How does City of Sterling compare with other water systems in Logan County?

By EPA's size categories, City of Sterling is a large system (10,001 to 100,000 people). Logan County has 13 active public water systems, and City of Sterling is the largest of them by population served. Its population served is about 11 times the county average of 1,377 people per system, and accounts for 84% of the 17,903 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Colorado, the 2,207 active systems average 3,400 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so City of Sterling is about 125% above that figure.

What does “community water system” mean?

A community water system serves at least 15 connections used by year-round residents, or regularly serves at least 25 year-round residents. Homes, apartments and mobile-home parks are served by these. Colorado has 1,068 active community water systems, 48% of the state's 2,207 active systems. Groundwater under the influence of surface water is well or spring water that the regulator has found to be affected by nearby surface water, so it is regulated under the surface-water treatment rules. 166 Colorado systems (7.5%) list groundwater under influence of surface water as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates City of Sterling?

EPA lists City of Sterling as owned by a local government. The CO state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 8 of the 13 active systems in Logan County (62%) are also owned by a local government.

Does City of Sterling have drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in August 2023. The violations listed here began between November 2020 and August 2023. By type: 9 monitoring and reporting, 2 public notice, recordkeeping or other and 1 monitoring. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Cryptosporidium (3 of them). EPA lists 12 as resolved. Resolved means at least one resolving action is on record: the system returned to compliance, the rule no longer applies, or no further action was needed.

Began	Violation	Contaminant or rule	Health-based	Status
2023-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	Turbiditycode 0100	No	Resolved
2023-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	E. colicode 3014	No	Resolved
2023-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	Cryptosporidiumcode 3015	No	Resolved
2023-07-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	Turbiditycode 0100	No	Resolved
2023-06-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	Cryptosporidiumcode 3015	No	Resolved
2023-05-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32	Cryptosporidiumcode 3015	No	Resolved
2022-10-01	Monitoring and reportingLead Consumer Notice · code 66	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved
2022-07-01	Monitoring and reportingFollow-up Or Routine LCR Tap M/R · code 52	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved
2021-04-05	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherPublic Notification Violation without NPDWR Violation · code 76	Public Noticecode 7500	No	Resolved
2021-01-05	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherPublic Notification Violation without NPDWR Violation · code 76	Public Noticecode 7500	No	Resolved
2020-11-01	MonitoringMonitoring, Routine (RTCR) · code 3A	Revised Total Coliform Rulecode 8000	No	Resolved
2020-11-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36	Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200	No	Resolved

The 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, newest first.Labels and codes come from EPA's SDWIS reference tables. A monitoring or reporting violation means a required test or report was missed or late; it does not by itself mean a contaminant was found. "Health-based" marks violations of a legal limit or required treatment.

City of Sterling: frequently asked questions

Who runs City of Sterling?

City of Sterling (PWSID CO0138045) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the CO state drinking water program.

How many people does City of Sterling serve?

City of Sterling reports serving 15,100 people through 4,655 service connections in Logan County, Colorado.

Where does City of Sterling get its water?

EPA SDWIS lists this system's primary water source as groundwater under influence of surface water. Groundwater under the influence of surface water is well or spring water that the regulator has found to be affected by nearby surface water, so it is regulated under the surface-water treatment rules.

Does City of Sterling have any drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in August 2023. A monitoring or reporting violation means a required test or report was missed or late; it does not by itself mean a contaminant was found.

Is City of Sterling's water safe to drink?

AquaCensus shows EPA compliance records, not current water test results, so it cannot say whether the water is safe at a given moment. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in August 2023. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the CO state drinking water program.

Where can I find City of Sterling's water quality report?

As a community water system, City of Sterling must deliver an annual water quality report, called a Consumer Confidence Report, to its customers by July 1 each year, covering the previous calendar year. The system can provide a copy on request.

Other water systems in Logan County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Fleming Town of	Logan	446	Community	Groundwater
Reata Travel Stop - Crook	Logan	415	Transient non-community	Groundwater
Caliche School	Logan	350	Non-transient non-community	Groundwater
Iliff Town of	Logan	328	Community	Groundwater
Peetz Town of	Logan	295	Community	Groundwater
Merino Town of	Logan	235	Community	Groundwater

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About this data

Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) and SDWA violation records, via EPA ECHO, as published October 1, 2026 — AquaCensus refreshes it quarterly. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.

Cite as: AquaCensus, “Sterling City of, PWSID CO0138045, Colorado”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/colorado/sterling-city-of-co0138045 (data as of October 1, 2026).