Public water system · NY1420549

Active

Elma Water District No. 1

At a glance

Elma Water District No. 1 (PWSID NY1420549) is an active community water system in Erie County, New York. It reports serving 10,287 people through 3,889 service connections. Its primary water source is purchased surface water, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. EPA's records list 10 violations for this system; none is health-based, and the most recent began in September 2020.

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

Population served

10,287

Service connections

3,889

Primary source

SWP

Purchased surface water

System type

CWS

Community water system

System record

PWSIDNY1420549

System typeCommunity water system

Activity statusActive

Population served10,287

Service connections3,889

Primary water sourcePurchased surface water

Owner typeLocal government

Primacy agencyNY state drinking water program

City servedElma (T)

StateNew York

ZIP—

CountyErie County

How does Elma Water District No. 1 compare with other water systems in Erie County?

By EPA's size categories, Elma Water District No. 1 is a large system (10,001 to 100,000 people). Erie County has 108 active public water systems. Its population served is about 16% above the county average of 8,858 people per system, and accounts for 1.1% of the 956,649 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across New York, the 8,167 active systems average 2,374 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so Elma Water District No. 1 is about 53% above 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. New York has 2,281 active community water systems, 28% of the state's 8,167 active systems. Purchased surface water means the system buys surface water from another public water system rather than drawing its own. 399 New York systems (4.9%) list purchased surface water as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates Elma Water District No. 1?

EPA lists Elma Water District No. 1 as owned by a local government. The NY state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 36 of the 108 active systems in Erie County (33%) are also owned by a local government.

Does Elma Water District No. 1 have drinking water violations?

EPA's records list 10 violations for this system; none is health-based, and the most recent began in September 2020. The violations listed here began between January 2011 and September 2020. By type: 8 monitoring and reporting, 1 public notice, recordkeeping or other and 1 monitoring. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Total trihalomethanes (TTHM) (4 of them). EPA lists 5 as resolved and 5 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
2020-09-01	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherConsumer Confidence Report Inadequate Reporting · code 72	Consumer Confidence Rulecode 7000	No	Resolved
2020-06-01	MonitoringMonitoring, Routine (RTCR) · code 3A	Revised Total Coliform Rulecode 8000	No	Resolved
2019-07-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Resolved
2015-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Resolved
2015-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	No	Resolved
2013-07-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Archived
2013-07-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	No	Archived
2013-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	No	Archived
2013-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Archived
2011-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Asbestoscode 1094	No	Archived

All 10 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.

Elma Water District No. 1: frequently asked questions

Who runs Elma Water District No. 1?

Elma Water District No. 1 (PWSID NY1420549) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the NY state drinking water program.

How many people does Elma Water District No. 1 serve?

Elma Water District No. 1 reports serving 10,287 people through 3,889 service connections in Erie County, New York.

Where does Elma Water District No. 1 get its water?

EPA SDWIS lists this system's primary water source as purchased surface water. Purchased surface water means the system buys surface water from another public water system rather than drawing its own.

Does Elma Water District No. 1 have any drinking water violations?

EPA's records list 10 violations for this system; none is health-based, and the most recent began in September 2020. 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 Elma Water District No. 1'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 10 violations for this system; none is health-based, and the most recent began in September 2020. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the NY state drinking water program.

Where can I find Elma Water District No. 1's water quality report?

As a community water system, Elma Water District No. 1 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 Erie County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Ecwa Direct	Erie	313,380	Community	Surface water
Buffalo Water Authority	Erie	276,000	Community	Surface water
Ecwa Amherst	Erie	92,697	Community	Purchased surface water
Tonawanda, Town Water Dept.	Erie	72,571	Community	Surface water
Ecwa Lancaster	Erie	29,018	Community	Purchased surface water
Ecwa Orchard Park	Erie	24,582	Community	Purchased 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, “Elma Water District No. 1, PWSID NY1420549, New York”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/new-york/elma-water-district-no-1-ny1420549 (data as of October 1, 2026).