Public water system · NM3549408

Active

Carlsbad Caverns National Park

At a glance

Carlsbad Caverns National Park (PWSID NM3549408) is an active non-transient non-community water system in Eddy County, New Mexico. It reports serving 2,500 people through 25 service connections. Its primary water source is groundwater, and EPA lists it as owned by the federal government. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in October 2024.

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

Population served

2,500

Service connections

Primary source

Groundwater

System type

NTNCWS

Non-transient non-community water system

System record

PWSIDNM3549408

System typeNon-transient non-community water system

Activity statusActive

Population served2,500

Service connections25

Primary water sourceGroundwater

Owner typeFederal government

Primacy agencyNM state drinking water program

City servedCarlsbad

StateNew Mexico

ZIP—

CountyEddy County

How does Carlsbad Caverns National Park compare with other water systems in Eddy County?

By EPA's size categories, Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a small system (501 to 3,300 people). Eddy County has 28 active public water systems, and Carlsbad Caverns National Park is the 4th-largest of them by population served. Its population served is roughly in line with the county average of 2,398 people per system, and accounts for 3.7% of the 67,133 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across New Mexico, the 1,165 active systems average 1,885 people each. Nationally, the average active non-transient non-community water system reports serving 430 people, so Carlsbad Caverns National Park is about 5.8 times that figure.

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

A non-transient non-community water system regularly serves at least 25 of the same people for more than six months a year, but not where they live. Schools, factories, office buildings and hospitals with their own supply are typical examples. New Mexico has 151 active non-transient non-community water systems, 13% of the state's 1,165 active systems. Groundwater means the system draws its water from wells or springs fed by underground aquifers. 1,009 New Mexico systems (87%) list groundwater as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates Carlsbad Caverns National Park?

EPA lists Carlsbad Caverns National Park as owned by the federal government. The NM state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 4 of the 28 active systems in Eddy County (14%) are also owned by the federal government.

Does Carlsbad Caverns National Park have drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in October 2024. The violations listed here began between May 2008 and October 2024. By type: 8 monitoring and reporting, 2 required treatment not met, 1 reporting and 1 public notice, recordkeeping or other. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Nitrate-Nitrite (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
2024-10-17	Required treatment not metLSL Inventory · code 2E	Lead and Copper Rule Revisionscode 5200	Yes	Resolved
2024-10-17	ReportingLSL Reporting · code 4G	Lead and Copper Rule Revisionscode 5200	No	Resolved
2022-04-15	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherPublic Notification Violation for NPDWR Violation · code 75	Public Noticecode 7500	No	Resolved
2020-11-19	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (GWR) · code 34	E. colicode 3014	No	Resolved
2020-10-01	Monitoring and reportingFollow-up Or Routine LCR Tap M/R · code 52	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved
2020-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Resolved
2020-08-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	No	Resolved
2020-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2017-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2014-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038	No	Resolved
2012-02-16	Required treatment not metFailure To Address Deficiency · code 45	Groundwater Rulecode 0700	Yes	Resolved
2008-05-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Routine Major (TCR) · code 23	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.

Carlsbad Caverns National Park: frequently asked questions

Who runs Carlsbad Caverns National Park?

Carlsbad Caverns National Park (PWSID NM3549408) is a non-transient non-community water system owned by the federal government. It is regulated by the NM state drinking water program.

How many people does Carlsbad Caverns National Park serve?

Carlsbad Caverns National Park reports serving 2,500 people through 25 service connections in Eddy County, New Mexico.

Where does Carlsbad Caverns National Park 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 Carlsbad Caverns National Park have any drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in October 2024. 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 Carlsbad Caverns National Park'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, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in October 2024. For current results, consult EPA ECHO, or the NM state drinking water program.

Where can I find Carlsbad Caverns National Park's water quality report?

The annual Consumer Confidence Report requirement applies to community water systems. Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a non-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 Eddy County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Carlsbad Municipal Water System	Eddy	33,626	Community	Groundwater
Artesia Municipal Water System	Eddy	15,176	Community	Groundwater
Otis Mdwca	Eddy	4,464	Community	Groundwater
Artesia Rural Water Cooperative	Eddy	1,950	Community	Groundwater
Loving Water System	Eddy	1,862	Community	Groundwater
Cottonwood Water Mdwca	Eddy	1,781	Community	Groundwater

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, “Carlsbad Caverns National Park, PWSID NM3549408, New Mexico”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/new-mexico/carlsbad-caverns-national-park-nm3549408 (data as of October 1, 2026).