Public water system · MO3024162
ActiveCole County Pwsd 3
At a glance
Cole County Pwsd 3 (PWSID MO3024162) is an active community water system in Cole County, Missouri. It reports serving 2,000 people through 815 service connections. Its primary water source is groundwater, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. EPA's records list 5 violations for this system; 1 is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2008.
Dataset updated . Source: EPA SDWIS/ECHO public records.
Population served
2,000
Service connections
815
Primary source
GW
Groundwater
System type
CWS
Community water system
System record
How does Cole County Pwsd 3 compare with other water systems in Cole County?
By EPA's size categories, Cole County Pwsd 3 is a small system (501 to 3,300 people). Cole County has 17 active public water systems, and Cole County Pwsd 3 is the 5th-largest of them by population served. Its population served is about half of the county average of 4,341 people per system, and accounts for 2.7% of the 73,799 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Missouri, the 2,943 active systems average 2,049 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so Cole County Pwsd 3 is well below 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. Missouri has 1,612 active community water systems, 55% of the state's 2,943 active systems. Groundwater means the system draws its water from wells or springs fed by underground aquifers. 2,521 Missouri systems (86%) list groundwater as their primary source.
Who owns and regulates Cole County Pwsd 3?
EPA lists Cole County Pwsd 3 as owned by a local government. The MO 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 17 active systems in Cole County (47%) are also owned by a local government.
Does Cole County Pwsd 3 have drinking water violations?
EPA's records list 5 violations for this system; 1 is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2008. The violations listed here began between September 1994 and October 2008. By type: 4 monitoring and reporting and 1 contaminant level above the legal limit. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Total coliform bacteria (TCR) (3 of them). EPA lists 3 as archived and 2 as resolved. 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. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008-10-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Radium-226code 4020 | No | Resolved |
| 2008-10-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Radium-228code 4030 | No | Resolved |
| 1995-04-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23 | Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100 | No | Archived |
| 1994-12-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23 | Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100 | No | Archived |
| 1994-09-01 | Contaminant level above the legal limitMaximum Contaminant Level Violation, Monthly (TCR) · code 22 | Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100 | Yes | Archived |
All 5 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.
Cole County Pwsd 3: frequently asked questions
Who runs Cole County Pwsd 3?
Cole County Pwsd 3 (PWSID MO3024162) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the MO state drinking water program.
How many people does Cole County Pwsd 3 serve?
Cole County Pwsd 3 reports serving 2,000 people through 815 service connections in Cole County, Missouri.
Where does Cole County Pwsd 3 get its water?
EPA SDWIS lists this system's primary water source as groundwater. Groundwater means the system draws its water from wells or springs fed by underground aquifers.
Does Cole County Pwsd 3 have any drinking water violations?
EPA's records list 5 violations for this system; 1 is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2008. 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 Cole County Pwsd 3'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 5 violations for this system; 1 is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2008. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the MO state drinking water program.
Where can I find Cole County Pwsd 3's water quality report?
As a community water system, Cole County Pwsd 3 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 Cole County
| Water system | County | Population served | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mo American Jefferson City District | Cole | 30,075 | Community | Surface water |
| Cole County Pwsd 1 | Cole | 16,548 | Community | Groundwater |
| Cole County Pwsd 2 | Cole | 13,107 | Community | Groundwater |
| Cole County Pwsd 4 | Cole | 7,568 | Community | Groundwater |
| Mo American Wardsville | Cole | 1,506 | Community | Groundwater |
| Russellville Pws | Cole | 800 | Community | Groundwater |
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, “Cole County Pwsd 3, PWSID MO3024162, Missouri”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/missouri/cole-county-pwsd-3-mo3024162 (data as of October 1, 2026).