PFAS in Maryland drinking water
EPA's final UCMR 5 data covers 83 public water systems in Maryland, serving about 5.4 million people. PFAS turned up in 30 of them (36%). 15 averaged above at least one EPA limit at a sampling point, affecting about 162,517 people.
Highest PFOA and PFOS averages among systems serving 1,000 or more: Town of Thurmont (14.0 / 44.5 ppt), Town of Elkton (22.6 / 7.1 ppt), City of Westminster (11.4 / 6.7 ppt), City of Aberdeen (7.4 / 8.2 ppt) and Maryland American Water Company (7.6 / 7.2 ppt).
Every tested system in Maryland
Largest first. PFOA and PFOS columns show the average at each system's worst sampling point; EPA's limit for each is 4 ppt. Filter by name:
| Water system | People | PFOA | PFOS | PFAS found | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission · Laurel | 1,900,000 | - | - | 2 | Below limits |
| City of Baltimore · Baltimore | 1,600,000 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| Glen Burnie-broadneck · Millersville | 290,606 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Howard County D.p.w. Distribution · Columbia | 286,158 | - | - | 2 | Below limits |
| Harford County D.p.w. · Abingdon | 104,567 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Hagerstown · Hagerstown | 92,200 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Waldorf - Charles County Dpw | 84,296 | - | - | 3 | Below limits |
| New Design - Frederick County · Frederick | 74,911 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| Crofton-odenton · Millersville | 62,986 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Fort George G. Meade · Fort Meade | 62,234 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Frederick · Frederick | 54,000 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| City of Rockville | 52,000 | - | - | 4 | Below limits |
| Lexington Park · California | 43,030 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Westminster · Westminster | 35,256 | 11.4 | 6.7 | 8 | Above limit |
| City of Annapolis · Annapolis | 35,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Salisbury · Salisbury | 30,343 | 2.9 | 10.0 | 6 | Above limit |
| Town of Ocean City · Ocean City | 30,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Cumberland · Cumberland | 27,039 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Broad Creek · Millersville | 26,033 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Bowie · Bowie | 25,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Freedom District · Westminster | 24,867 | - | - | 2 | Below limits |
| Mgm National Harbor | 24,000 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| Patuxent Naval Air Station (navfac-wash) · Patuxent River | 22,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Aberdeen · Aberdeen | 18,006 | 7.4 | 8.2 | 8 | Above limit |
| Easton Utilities · Easton | 17,357 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Elkton · Elkton | 15,625 | 22.6 | 7.1 | 8 | Above limit |
| City of Cambridge · Cambridge | 15,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Chapel Hill - Aberdeen Proving Grounds · Aberdeen | 15,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Havre De Grace · Havre De Grace | 14,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Maryland American Water Company · Bel Air | 13,200 | 7.6 | 7.2 | 9 | Above limit |
| Ocean Pines · Berlin | 11,890 | - | - | 2 | Below limits |
| Town of La Plata · La Plata | 11,535 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Frostburg · Frostburg | 11,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Mount Airy · Mount Airy | 9,890 | 8.4 | 5.9 | 7 | Above limit |
| Chesapeake Ranch Estates · Lusby | 9,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Stevensville · Stevensville | 9,155 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| U.s. Naval Academy · Annapolis | 8,700 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of North East · North East | 8,600 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| Town of Walkersville · Walkersville | 8,440 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Fort Detrick · Frederick | 7,900 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| City of Brunswick · Brunswick | 7,312 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Taneytown · Taneytown | 6,750 | 4.3 | 10.4 | 6 | Above limit |
| Town of Hampstead · Hampstead | 6,600 | 9.1 | 5.5 | 8 | Above limit |
| Bryans Road | 6,260 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Thurmont · Thurmont | 6,200 | 14.0 | 44.5 | 4 | Above limit |
| Town of Poolesville · Poolesville | 6,005 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 8 | Above limit |
| Mystic Harbour · Berlin | 5,945 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Fruitland · Fruitland | 5,907 | - | 2.1 | 2 | Sample at limit |
| Eastern Region Allegany Distrib. System · Cumberland | 5,703 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Lavale Sanitary Commission · Lavale | 5,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Severn Water Company · Bel Air | 5,447 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Chestertown · Chestertown | 5,400 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Midland-lonaconing · Lonaconing | 5,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Chesapeake Beach · Chesapeake Beach | 5,000 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Western Region Allegany Distrib. System · Cumberland | 4,955 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Manchester · Manchester | 4,954 | 4.4 | - | 6 | Above limit |
| Chesapeake Complex · Pasadena | 4,785 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Denton · Denton | 4,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Delmar · Delmar | 4,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Berlin · Berlin | 4,500 | - | - | 4 | Below limits |
| Town of Perryville · Perryville | 4,413 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Prince Frederick · Prince Frederick | 4,371 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Middletown · Middletown | 4,288 | 4.8 | 6.4 | 8 | Above limit |
| Boonsboro - Keedysville · Boonsboro | 4,250 | 5.9 | - | 5 | Above limit |
| Town of Indian Head · Indian Head | 4,100 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| City of Pocomoke City · Pocomoke City | 4,100 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| The Provinces · Dunkirk | 3,991 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Solomons · Prince Frederick | 3,811 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Elkton West · Newark | 3,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Eastern Correctional Institute | 3,500 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Centreville · Centreville | 3,322 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Naval Support Facility, Indian Head · Indian Head | 3,321 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Princess Anne · Princess Anne | 3,300 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Manor Shopping Center · Phoenix | 2,921 | - | - | 1 | Below limits |
| Town of Hancock · Hancock | 1,921 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Glenelg Country School · Ellicott City | 950 | 8.9 | - | 7 | Above limit |
| Piney Point · California | 672 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Town of Millington · Millington | 625 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Oakville Elementary School · Loveville | 475 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| Charlotte Hall Va Home | 270 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| New Life Christian School · Frederick | 200 | 8.6 | 12.3 | 7 | Above limit |
| Penn-mar Organization, INC. · Freeland | 122 | - | - | 0 | None found |
| White Plains 2 Mhp/jack Blair · Jessup | 70 | - | - | 0 | None found |
On a private well in Maryland?
EPA's program only covers public systems. Private wells are never part of UCMR 5, so the only way to know is to test. Our well testing guide covers which lab tests to order, and the best well water systems covers what to install once you have results.
Cite this page
Well & Tap. "PFAS in Maryland drinking water: results for 83 systems." Data: U.S. EPA UCMR 5, final release August 2026. https://wellandtap.com/pfas/maryland/
Source: EPA UCMR 5 final occurrence data (August 2026); population from EPA SDWIS. Method.