Public water system · MA3229000
ActivePeabody Water Dept.
At a glance
Peabody Water Dept. (PWSID MA3229000) is an active community water system in Essex County, Massachusetts. It reports serving 54,481 people through 14,245 service connections. Its primary water source is 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 January 2019.
Dataset updated . Source: EPA SDWIS/ECHO public records.
Population served
54,481
Service connections
14,245
Primary source
SW
Surface water
System type
CWS
Community water system
System record
How does Peabody Water Dept. compare with other water systems in Essex County?
By EPA's size categories, Peabody Water Dept. is a large system (10,001 to 100,000 people). Essex County has 67 active public water systems, and Peabody Water Dept. is the 5th-largest of them by population served. Its population served is about 4.1 times the county average of 13,412 people per system, and accounts for 6.1% of the 898,585 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Massachusetts, the 1,636 active systems average 6,275 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so Peabody Water Dept. is about 8.1 times 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. Massachusetts has 531 active community water systems, 32% of the state's 1,636 active systems. Surface water means the system draws its water from rivers, lakes, streams or reservoirs. 76 Massachusetts systems (4.6%) list surface water as their primary source.
Who owns and regulates Peabody Water Dept.?
EPA lists Peabody Water Dept. as owned by a local government. The MA state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 39 of the 67 active systems in Essex County (58%) are also owned by a local government.
Does Peabody Water Dept. have drinking water violations?
Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in January 2019. The violations listed here began between January 2019 and January 2019. By type: 12 monitoring and reporting. The contaminants or rules involved are Selenium, Cadmium, Antimony and Chromium. EPA lists 12 as archived. Archived means the violation was not marked resolved but is more than five years past the end of the noncompliance period, so it no longer counts toward current compliance status.
| Began | Violation | Contaminant or rule | Health-based | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Seleniumcode 1045 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Cadmiumcode 1015 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Antimonycode 1074 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Chromiumcode 1020 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Nickelcode 1036 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Thalliumcode 1085 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Nitratecode 1040 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Cyanidecode 1024 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Fluoridecode 1025 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Bariumcode 1010 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Mercurycode 1035 | No | Archived |
| 2019-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Berylliumcode 1075 | No | Archived |
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.
Peabody Water Dept.: frequently asked questions
Who runs Peabody Water Dept.?
Peabody Water Dept. (PWSID MA3229000) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the MA state drinking water program.
How many people does Peabody Water Dept. serve?
Peabody Water Dept. reports serving 54,481 people through 14,245 service connections in Essex County, Massachusetts.
Where does Peabody Water Dept. get its water?
EPA SDWIS lists this system's primary water source as surface water. Surface water means the system draws its water from rivers, lakes, streams or reservoirs.
Does Peabody Water Dept. 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 January 2019. 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 Peabody Water Dept.'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 January 2019. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the MA state drinking water program.
Where can I find Peabody Water Dept.'s water quality report?
As a community water system, Peabody Water Dept. 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 Essex County
| Water system | County | Population served | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lynn Water and Sewer Comm | Essex | 101,253 | Community | Surface water |
| Salem and Beverly Water Supply Board | Essex | 90,330 | Community | Surface water |
| Lawrence Water Works | Essex | 89,143 | Community | Surface water |
| Haverhill Water Dept | Essex | 61,277 | Community | Surface water |
| Methuen Water Dept | Essex | 53,059 | Community | Surface water |
| Beverly Water Dept | Essex | 47,461 | Community | Purchased surface water |
Related pages
Working with water-system records? Pro adds alerts, change history and CSV export ($49/mo); Enterprise adds full national files, the API and an MCP server for AI tools.
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, “Peabody Water Dept., PWSID MA3229000, Massachusetts”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/massachusetts/peabody-water-dept-ma3229000 (data as of October 1, 2026).