Public water system · WY5600206
ActiveCowley, Town of
At a glance
Town of Cowley (PWSID WY5600206) is an active community water system in Big Horn County, Wyoming. It reports serving 800 people through 375 service connections. Its primary water source is groundwater, 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 September 2025.
Dataset updated . Source: EPA SDWIS/ECHO public records.
Population served
800
Service connections
375
Primary source
GW
Groundwater
System type
CWS
Community water system
System record
How does Town of Cowley compare with other water systems in Big Horn County?
By EPA's size categories, Town of Cowley is a small system (501 to 3,300 people). Big Horn County has 28 active public water systems, and Town of Cowley is the 5th-largest of them by population served. Its population served is about twice the county average of 371 people per system, and accounts for 7.7% of the 10,387 people reported by systems filed under the county. Across Wyoming, the 775 active systems average 838 people each. Nationally, the average active community water system reports serving 6,703 people, so Town of Cowley is well below 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. Wyoming has 332 active community water systems, 43% of the state's 775 active systems. Groundwater means the system draws its water from wells or springs fed by underground aquifers. 585 Wyoming systems (75%) list groundwater as their primary source.
Who owns and regulates Town of Cowley?
EPA lists Town of Cowley as owned by a local government. The WY state drinking water program is its primacy agency, the regulator with primary enforcement responsibility for the system under the Safe Drinking Water Act. 12 of the 28 active systems in Big Horn County (43%) are also owned by a local government.
Does Town of Cowley have drinking water violations?
Of the 12 most recent violations in EPA's records, 2 are health-based, and the most recent began in September 2025. The violations listed here began between January 1999 and September 2025. By type: 10 monitoring and reporting and 2 required treatment not met. The contaminant or rule involved most often is Lead and Copper Rule (2 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-09-29 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Source Water (GWR) · code 34 | E. colicode 3014 | No | Unaddressed |
| 2024-12-30 | Monitoring and reportingLead Consumer Notice · code 66 | Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000 | No | Resolved |
| 2021-12-30 | Monitoring and reportingLead Consumer Notice · code 66 | Lead and Copper Rulecode 5000 | No | Resolved |
| 2019-11-02 | Required treatment not metFailure To Address Deficiency · code 45 | Groundwater Rulecode 0700 | Yes | Resolved |
| 2017-01-22 | Required treatment not metFailure To Address Deficiency · code 45 | Groundwater Rulecode 0700 | Yes | Resolved |
| 2006-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Nitrate-Nitritecode 1038 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | 1,1,2-Trichloroethanecode 2985 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | 1,2,4-Trichlorobenzenecode 2378 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | 1,1-Dichloroethylenecode 2977 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | cis-1,2-Dichloroethylenecode 2380 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Carbon tetrachloridecode 2982 | No | Resolved |
| 1999-01-01 | Monitoring and reportingMonitoring, Regular · code 03 | Vinyl chloridecode 2976 | 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.
Town of Cowley: frequently asked questions
Who runs Town of Cowley?
Town of Cowley (PWSID WY5600206) is a community water system owned by a local government. It is regulated by the WY state drinking water program.
How many people does Town of Cowley serve?
Town of Cowley reports serving 800 people through 375 service connections in Big Horn County, Wyoming.
Where does Town of Cowley 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 Town of Cowley 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 September 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 Town of Cowley'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 September 2025. For current results, consult the system's annual water quality report, EPA ECHO, or the WY state drinking water program.
Where can I find Town of Cowley's water quality report?
As a community water system, Town of Cowley 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 Big Horn County
| Water system | County | Population served | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lovell, Town of | Big Horn | 2,250 | Community | Purchased surface water |
| Greybull, Town of | Big Horn | 2,080 | Community | Groundwater |
| Basin, Town of | Big Horn | 1,250 | Community | Purchased groundwater |
| South Big Horn County Jpb | Big Horn | 900 | Community | Groundwater |
| Byron, Town of | Big Horn | 561 | Community | Purchased surface water |
| Antelope Butte Ski Area | Big Horn | 527 | Transient non-community | 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, “Cowley, Town of, PWSID WY5600206, Wyoming”, https://aquacensus.com/water-systems/wyoming/cowley-town-of-wy5600206 (data as of October 1, 2026).