Palo Alto County, IA
The federal environmental record for Palo Alto County (population 8,810): what is on file, where it is, and what remains open. Sources and retrieval dates are on the methodology page.
0
Superfund NPL sites
1
federal cleanup sites
1
PFAS-detecting water systems
2
TRI facilities
1
open tank releases
Drinking water: PFAS testing
Public water systems serving Palo Alto with at least one PFAS detection under UCMR5. The federal limit for PFOA and PFOS is 4 ng/L; EPA proposed in May 2026 to rescind the limits for the other compounds, which are shown for information.
| System | Highest results | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| IOWA LAKES REGIONAL WATER - LAKES AREA IA3060001 | PFBA: 5 ng/L | detected |
On a system with detections? Testing and treatment options
Facilities reporting toxic releases (2024)
2 facilities in Palo Alto filed TRI reports for 2024, totalling 116k lb released.
| Facility | City | Top chemicals | Total released |
|---|---|---|---|
| AG PROCESSING INC | EMMETSBURG | n-Hexane | 102k lb |
| POET BIOREFINING - EMMETSBURG LLC | EMMETSBURG | Ammonia, Methanol | 14k lb |
Underground fuel tanks
EPA's UST Finder records 80 tank facilities in Palo Alto: 31 tanks in service and 178 closed. 31 fuel releases are on record, of which 1 remain open. Open releases are cleanups that have not reached "no further action".
Radon
EPA maps Palo Alto as Zone 1, the highest predicted indoor radon levels (over 4 pCi/L average). Radon and air quality are covered in depth on lung.com.
The record for one specific address
County figures blur what matters: distance. The Address Environmental Report runs these same federal datasets against one address and reports every site, tank, polluter and water result around it, with distances, in about a minute.
Get the report - $39All federal cleanup sites on file
The wider Superfund enterprise inventory (SEMS) for Palo Alto, including sites assessed but never listed. Presence here records that EPA had reason to look, not a finding of danger.
- WEST BEND ELEVATORMALLARD