Public water system record
Ames
Serves Ames, Major County, OK · 199 people served
Federal records show 7 health-based violations and 5 monitoring/reporting issues for Ames in the last ten years. The most serious issue in this window was a resolved Arsenic violation.
System profile
- Health-based violations, last 10 years
- 7
- Resolved
- 7
- Unresolved
- 0
- Any acute record
- No
- Monitoring issues, last 10 years
- 5
Key facts
- Ames draws water from 3 wells.
- Highest measured level in the last 10 years: Arsenic, 0.019 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.9 times the limit), 2024.
- Most recent formal enforcement: compliance order (no penalty) by Oklahoma, August 2025.
- Record on file since 1988, with 4 health-based violations before October 19, 2016.
- Lead pipe inventory: 0 lead and 0 unknown out of 116 service lines.
Check whether Ames serves your address
Health-based violations
Since October 2016Violation data reflects EPA records through March 2026. For the most current status, visit the EPA ECHO database.
| Contaminant | Rule family | Start date | Status | Acute |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.011 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.1 times the limit)
|
330 | Jan 1, 2025 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.012 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.2 times the limit)
|
330 | Oct 1, 2024 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.012 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.2 times the limit)
|
330 | Jul 1, 2024 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.019 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.9 times the limit)
|
330 | Apr 1, 2024 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.012 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.2 times the limit)
|
330 | Jan 1, 2024 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.011 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.1 times the limit)
|
330 | Oct 1, 2020 | Resolved | No |
|
Arsenic
Contaminant limit exceeded
Measured 0.011 mg/L, federal limit 0.01 mg/L (1.1 times the limit)
|
330 | Jul 1, 2020 | Resolved | No |
Monitoring and reporting issues
Since October 2016Missed tests or reports, not contaminants found above a limit.
| Issue | Start date | Status |
|---|---|---|
|
2,4-D
Monitoring and reporting
|
Apr 1, 2025 | Resolved |
|
Consumer Confidence Rule
OTHER
|
Jul 1, 2024 | Resolved |
|
Arsenic
Monitoring and reporting
|
Apr 1, 2022 | Resolved |
|
Arsenic
Monitoring and reporting
|
Apr 1, 2022 | Resolved |
|
Arsenic
Monitoring and reporting
|
Apr 1, 2022 | Resolved |
Full record since 1988
EPA's records for Ames go back to 1988. Before October 19, 2016 they list 4 health-based violations (2 resolved, 2 archived by EPA without a recorded fix) and 8 monitoring or reporting violations.
| Violations that began in | Health-based | Monitoring and reporting |
|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3 | 0 |
| 1990s | 1 | 3 |
| 2000s | 0 | 4 |
| 2010 to October 18, 2016 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020s | 7 | 5 |
Most recent health-based violation before October 19, 2016: Total Coliform, began September 1991, Resolved.
Show all 4 health-based violations before October 19, 2016
| Contaminant | Start date | Status |
|---|---|---|
|
Total Coliform
Contaminant limit exceeded
|
Sep 1, 1991 | Resolved |
|
Nitrate (acute)
Contaminant limit exceeded
|
Jun 1, 1988 | Resolved |
|
Nitrate (acute)
Contaminant limit exceeded
|
Jun 1, 1988 | Archived |
|
Nitrate (acute)
Contaminant limit exceeded
|
Jun 1, 1988 | Archived |
Enforcement actions
Oklahoma regulators took 8 formal enforcement actions against Ames and issued 1 boil water order between 1988 and 2025. The most recent was a compliance order (no penalty) in August 2025.
| Date | By | Action | Violations covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 7, 2025 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 1 violation (1 health-based): Arsenic |
| Apr 9, 2025 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 2 violations (2 health-based): Arsenic |
| Oct 18, 2024 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 1 violation (1 health-based): Arsenic |
| Jun 5, 2024 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 1 violation (1 health-based): Arsenic |
| Mar 25, 2021 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 1 violation (1 health-based): Arsenic |
| Nov 20, 2020 | Oklahoma | Compliance order (no penalty) | 1 violation (1 health-based): Arsenic |
| Nov 2, 2007 | Oklahoma | Compliance order with a penalty | 2 violations: Arsenic |
| Jun 29, 2007 | Oklahoma | Compliance order with a penalty | 2 violations: Nitrate-Nitrite |
| Sep 30, 1988 | Oklahoma | Boil water order | 1 violation |
What the violations mean
Arsenic
7 incidentsArsenic exceeded the federal limit
Long-term arsenic exposure is linked to cancer and cardiovascular effects
Where the water comes from
Ames draws water from 3 wells. It also has an emergency connection to Enid.
Emergency or part-time connections to
- Enid Enid, OK
Annual water quality report
Ames must give its customers an annual water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report) by July 1, with the levels its tests found in the previous year.
Systems serving 500 or fewer people may meet the rule by telling customers the report is available on request, so you may need to ask Ames for a copy.
Find a posted report with EPA's Consumer Confidence Report search
Testing your own water
To test the water at your tap, or a private well this record does not cover, use a laboratory certified for drinking water by Oklahoma.
Certified drinking water labs by state EPA guidance for private wells