Public water system · NC0112015

Active

Morganton City of

At a glance

City of Morganton (PWSID NC0112015) is an active community water system in Burke County, North Carolina. It reports serving 27,221 people through 10,717 service connections. Its primary water source is surface water, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in April 2026.

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

Population served

27,221

Service connections

10,717

Primary source

Surface water

System type

CWS

Community water system

System record

PWSIDNC0112015

System typeCommunity water system

Activity statusActive

Population served27,221

Service connections10,717

Primary water sourceSurface water

Owner typeLocal government

Primacy agencyNC state drinking water program

City servedMorganton

StateNorth Carolina

ZIP—

CountyBurke County

How does City of Morganton compare with other water systems in Burke County?

By EPA's size categories, City of Morganton is a large system (10,001 to 100,000 people). Burke County has 53 active public water systems, and City of Morganton is the largest of them by population served. Its population served is about 19 times the county average of 1,440 people per system, and accounts for 36% of the 76,341 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across North Carolina, the 5,087 active systems average 1,971 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so City of Morganton is about 4.1 times 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. North Carolina has 2,031 active community water systems, 40% of the state's 5,087 active systems. Surface water means the system draws its water from rivers, lakes, streams or reservoirs. 132 North Carolina systems (2.6%) list surface water as their primary source.

Who owns and regulates City of Morganton?

EPA lists City of Morganton as owned by a local government. The NC state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 9 of the 53 active systems in Burke County (17%) are also owned by a local government.

Does City of Morganton have drinking water violations?

Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in April 2026. The violations listed here began between January 1985 and April 2026. By type: 9 monitoring and reporting, 2 required treatment not met and 1 public notice, recordkeeping or other. The contaminants or rules involved are Haloacetic acids (HAA5), Total trihalomethanes (TTHM), Lead and Copper Rule and Carbon, total. EPA lists 9 as resolved, 2 as addressed 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. Addressed means the violation is not resolved or archived and is covered by formal enforcement. 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
2026-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456	No	Addressed
2026-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950	No	Addressed
2023-01-01	Monitoring and reportingLead Consumer Notice · code 66	Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000	No	Resolved
2008-04-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27	Carbon, totalcode 2920	No	Archived
2008-03-01	Required treatment not metSingle Turbidity Exceed (Enhanced SWTR) · code 43	Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0300	Yes	Resolved
2003-07-01	Public notice, recordkeeping or otherConsumer Confidence Report Complete Failure to Report · code 71	Consumer Confidence Rulecode 7000	No	Resolved
1992-01-01	Required treatment not metFailure to Filter (SWTR) · code 42	Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200	Yes	Resolved
1985-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Nitratecode 1040	No	Resolved
1985-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Bariumcode 1010	No	Resolved
1985-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Fluoridecode 1025	No	Resolved
1985-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Mercurycode 1035	No	Resolved
1985-01-01	Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03	Chromiumcode 1020	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.

City of Morganton: frequently asked questions

Who runs City of Morganton?

City of Morganton (PWSID NC0112015) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the NC state drinking water program.

How many people does City of Morganton serve?

City of Morganton reports serving 27,221 people through 10,717 service connections in Burke County, North Carolina.

Where does City of Morganton 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 City of Morganton 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 April 2026. 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 City of Morganton'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 April 2026. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the NC state drinking water program.

Where can I find City of Morganton's water quality report?

As a community water system, City of Morganton 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 Burke County

Water system	County	Population served	Type	Source
Valdese, Town of	Burke	13,571	Community	Surface water
Icard Township Water Corp	Burke	7,821	Community	Purchased surface water
Brentwood Water Association	Burke	6,038	Community	Purchased surface water
Brentwood-Jamestown Road	Burke	6,035	Community	Purchased surface water
Burke Co. Water-South	Burke	5,207	Community	Purchased surface water
Drexel Town of	Burke	3,302	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, “Morganton City of, PWSID NC0112015, North Carolina”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/north-carolina/morganton-city-of-nc0112015 (data as of October 1, 2026).