Public water system · MN1690014

Active

Ely

At a glance

Ely (PWSID MN1690014) is an active community water system in St. Louis County, Minnesota. It reports serving 3,258 people through 1,875 service connections. Its primary water source is surface water, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. EPA's records list 7 violations for this system; 3 are health-based, and the most recent began in January 2025.

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

Population served

3,258

Service connections

1,875

Primary source

Surface water

System type

CWS

Community water system

System record

PWSIDMN1690014

System typeCommunity water system

Activity statusActive

Population served3,258

Service connections1,875

Primary water sourceSurface water

Owner typeLocal government

Primacy agencyMN state drinking water program

City served—

StateMinnesota

ZIP—

CountySt. Louis County

How does Ely compare with other water systems in St. Louis County?

By EPA's size categories, Ely is a small system (501 to 3,300 people). St. Louis County has 356 active public water systems. Its population served is about 6.5 times the county average of 505 people per system, and accounts for 1.8% of the 179,795 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Minnesota, the 6,465 active systems average 820 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so Ely is about half of 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. Minnesota has 987 active community water systems, 15% of the state's 6,465 active systems. Surface water means the system draws its water from rivers, lakes, streams or reservoirs. 61 Minnesota systems (0.9%) list surface water as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates Ely?

EPA lists Ely as owned by a local government. The MN state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 38 of the 356 active systems in St. Louis County (11%) are also owned by a local government.

Does Ely have drinking water violations?

EPA's records list 7 violations for this system; 3 are health-based, and the most recent began in January 2025. The violations listed here began between October 2022 and January 2025. By type: 3 contaminant level above the legal limit, 2 public notice, recordkeeping or other and 2 monitoring and reporting. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Haloacetic acids (HAA5) (3 of them). EPA lists 6 as resolved and 1 as archived. 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. 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
2025-01-27	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherPublic Notification Violation for NPDWR Violation · code 75	Public Noticecode 7500	No	Resolved
2024-10-01	Contaminant level above the legal limitMaximum Contaminant Level Violation, Average · code 02	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	Yes	Archived
2024-07-01	Monitoring and reportingFollow-up Or Routine LCR Tap M/R · code 52	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved
2023-07-31	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherPublic Notification Violation for NPDWR Violation · code 75	Public Noticecode 7500	No	Resolved
2023-07-01	Contaminant level above the legal limitMaximum Contaminant Level Violation, Average · code 02	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	Yes	Resolved
2023-04-01	Contaminant level above the legal limitMaximum Contaminant Level Violation, Average · code 02	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	Yes	Resolved
2022-10-01	Monitoring and reportingFollow-up Or Routine LCR Tap M/R · code 52	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved

All 7 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.

Ely: frequently asked questions

Who runs Ely?

Ely (PWSID MN1690014) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the MN state drinking water program.

How many people does Ely serve?

Ely reports serving 3,258 people through 1,875 service connections in St. Louis County, Minnesota.

Where does Ely 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 Ely have any drinking water violations?

EPA's records list 7 violations for this system; 3 are health-based, and the most recent began in January 2025. 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 Ely'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. EPA's records list 7 violations for this system; 3 are health-based, and the most recent began in January 2025. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the MN state drinking water program.

Where can I find Ely's water quality report?

As a community water system, Ely 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 St. Louis County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Duluth	St. Louis	86,859	Community	Surface water
Hibbing	St. Louis	16,028	Community	Groundwater
Virginia	St. Louis	8,361	Community	Surface water
Hermantown	St. Louis	7,215	Community	Purchased surface water
Chisholm	St. Louis	4,940	Community	Surface water
Eveleth	St. Louis	3,770	Community	Surface water

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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, “Ely, PWSID MN1690014, Minnesota”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/minnesota/ely-mn1690014 (data as of October 1, 2026).