Public water system · MT0002680

Active

Hardin Westbound Rest Area

At a glance

Hardin Westbound Rest Area (PWSID MT0002680) is an active transient non-community water system in Big Horn County, Montana. It reports serving 715 people through 1 service connection. Its primary water source is groundwater, and EPA lists it as owned by a state government. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2025.

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

Population served

715

Service connections

Primary source

Groundwater

System type

TNCWS

Transient non-community water system

System record

PWSIDMT0002680

System typeTransient non-community water system

Activity statusActive

Population served715

Service connections1

Primary water sourceGroundwater

Owner typeState government

Primacy agencyMT state drinking water program

City servedHardin

StateMontana

ZIP—

CountyBig Horn County

How does Hardin Westbound Rest Area compare with other water systems in Big Horn County?

By EPA's size categories, Hardin Westbound Rest Area is a small system (501 to 3,300 people). Big Horn County has 23 active public water systems, and Hardin Westbound Rest Area is the 4th-largest of them by population served. Its population served is about 59% above the county average of 449 people per system, and accounts for 6.9% of the 10,335 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Montana, the 2,378 active systems average 489 people each. Nationally, the average active transient non-community water system reports serving 144 people, so Hardin Westbound Rest Area is about 5 times that figure.

What does “transient non-community water system” mean?

A transient non-community water system serves places where people do not stay long, such as gas stations and campgrounds, and regularly serves at least 25 people a day for at least 60 days a year. Montana has 1,206 active transient non-community water systems, 51% of the state's 2,378 active systems. Groundwater means the system draws its water from wells or springs fed by underground aquifers. 1,994 Montana systems (84%) list groundwater as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates Hardin Westbound Rest Area?

EPA lists Hardin Westbound Rest Area as owned by a state government. The MT state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 5 of the 23 active systems in Big Horn County (22%) are also owned by a state government.

Does Hardin Westbound Rest Area have drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in October 2025. The violations listed here began between August 1994 and October 2025. By type: 12 monitoring and reporting. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Nitrate-Nitrite (6 of them). EPA lists 11 as resolved and 1 as unaddressed. 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. Unaddressed means the violation is not resolved or archived and is not yet covered by formal enforcement.

Began	Violation	Contaminant or rule	Health-based	Status
2025-10-09	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (GWR) · code 34	E. colicode 3014	No	Unaddressed
2021-10-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2013-11-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23	Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100	No	Resolved
2008-10-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2008-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2007-07-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2007-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2005-10-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23	Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100	No	Resolved
2004-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
1998-10-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23	Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100	No	Resolved
1994-11-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23	Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100	No	Resolved
1994-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Repeat Major (TCR) · code 25	Total coliform bacteria (TCR)code 3100	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.

Hardin Westbound Rest Area: frequently asked questions

Who runs Hardin Westbound Rest Area?

Hardin Westbound Rest Area (PWSID MT0002680) is a transient non-community water system owned by a state government. It is regulated by the MT state drinking water program.

How many people does Hardin Westbound Rest Area serve?

Hardin Westbound Rest Area reports serving 715 people through 1 service connection in Big Horn County, Montana.

Where does Hardin Westbound Rest Area 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 Hardin Westbound Rest Area 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 October 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 Hardin Westbound Rest Area'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 October 2025. For current results, consult EPA ECHO, or the MT state drinking water program.

Where can I find Hardin Westbound Rest Area's water quality report?

The annual Consumer Confidence Report requirement applies to community water systems. Hardin Westbound Rest Area is a transient non-community water system, so it is not required to publish one; like every public water system, it must notify the people it serves about violations under EPA's public notification rules.

Other water systems in Big Horn County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Hardin City of	Big Horn	3,500	Community	Surface water
Little Bighorn Battlefield Nm	Big Horn	2,020	Non-transient non-community	Groundwater
Hardin Eastbound Rest Area	Big Horn	877	Transient non-community	Groundwater
Lodge Grass Town of	Big Horn	480	Community	Groundwater
Fort Smith Water and Sewer District	Big Horn	450	Community	Groundwater
Tongue River Campers Point	Big Horn	305	Transient non-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, “Hardin Westbound Rest Area, PWSID MT0002680, Montana”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/montana/hardin-westbound-rest-area-mt0002680 (data as of October 1, 2026).