Public water system · OR4100724
ActiveSt Helens, City of
At a glance
City of St Helens (PWSID OR4100724) is an active community water system in Columbia County, Oregon. It reports serving 13,410 people through 5,500 service connections. Its primary water source is groundwater under influence of surface water, and EPA lists it as owned by a local government. Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in July 2023.
Dataset updated . Source: EPA SDWIS/ECHO public records.
Population served
13,410
Service connections
5,500
Primary source
GU
Groundwater under influence of surface water
System type
CWS
Community water system
System record
How does City of St Helens compare with other water systems in Columbia County?
By EPA's size categories, City of St Helens is a large system (10,001 to 100,000 people). Columbia County has 57 active public water systems, and City of St Helens is the largest of them by population served. Its population served is about 19 times the county average of 705 people per system, and accounts for 33% of the 40,191 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Oregon, the 2,536 active systems average 1,587 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so City of St Helens is about twice 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. Oregon has 940 active community water systems, 37% of the state's 2,536 active systems. Groundwater under the influence of surface water is well or spring water that the regulator has found to be affected by nearby surface water, so it is regulated under the surface-water treatment rules. 21 Oregon systems (0.8%) list groundwater under influence of surface water as their primary source.
Who owns and regulates City of St Helens?
EPA lists City of St Helens as owned by a local government. The OR state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 13 of the 57 active systems in Columbia County (23%) are also owned by a local government.
Does City of St Helens have drinking water violations?
Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, none is health-based, and the most recent began in July 2023. The violations listed here began between January 2006 and July 2023. By type: 12 monitoring and reporting. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Surface Water Treatment Rule (7 of them). EPA lists 10 as resolved and 2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-07-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Resolved |
| 2023-07-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Resolved |
| 2023-07-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Resolved |
| 2023-07-01 | Monitoring and reportingInitial, Follow-up, or Routine Source Water M/R · code 56 | Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000 | No | Resolved |
| 2023-04-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27 | Total trihalomethanes (TTHM)code 2950 | No | Resolved |
| 2023-04-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring and Reporting (DBP) · code 27 | Haloacetic acids (HAA5)code 2456 | No | Resolved |
| 2010-12-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Archived |
| 2010-12-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Archived |
| 2010-05-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Resolved |
| 2010-05-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring of Treatment (SWTR-Filter) · code 36 | Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0200 | No | Resolved |
| 2008-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (LT2) · code 32 | Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rulecode 0800 | No | Resolved |
| 2006-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Nitratecode 1040 | 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 St Helens: frequently asked questions
Who runs City of St Helens?
City of St Helens (PWSID OR4100724) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the OR state drinking water program.
How many people does City of St Helens serve?
City of St Helens reports serving 13,410 people through 5,500 service connections in Columbia County, Oregon.
Where does City of St Helens get its water?
EPA SDWIS lists this system's primary water source as groundwater under influence of surface water. Groundwater under the influence of surface water is well or spring water that the regulator has found to be affected by nearby surface water, so it is regulated under the surface-water treatment rules.
Does City of St Helens 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 July 2023. 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 St Helens' 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 July 2023. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the OR state drinking water program.
Where can I find City of St Helens' water quality report?
As a community water system, City of St Helens 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 Columbia County
| Water system | County | Population served | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scappoose, City of | Columbia | 8,710 | Community | Surface water |
| Mcnulty Water PUD | Columbia | 2,500 | Community | Groundwater |
| Clatskanie, City of | Columbia | 2,188 | Community | Surface water |
| Vernonia, City of | Columbia | 2,100 | Community | Surface water |
| Warren Water Association | Columbia | 2,050 | Community | Groundwater |
| Columbia City Mun Waterworks | Columbia | 1,995 | 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, “St Helens, City of, PWSID OR4100724, Oregon”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/oregon/st-helens-city-of-or4100724 (data as of October 1, 2026).