Emmaus Borough Public Water

PWSID PA3390032 - Emmaus

PFAS was measured above a final federal limit in this system.

The highest result was PFOS at 153 ng/L, against a federal limit of 4 ng/L. A system over the limit has a legal obligation to act by 2031; it does not mean the water is unsafe to drink today, and it does not describe what reaches one specific tap.

14,000

people served

4,740

service connections

groundwater

primary source

240

sample results

Every compound detected

Highest single result per compound, in nanograms per litre (the same unit as parts per trillion). EPA proposed in May 2026 to rescind the limits marked as withdrawn, so those results are reported without a comparison.

Compound	Highest result	Federal limit	Reading
PFOS	153 ng/L	4 ng/L	above limit
PFNA	99.8 ng/L	withdrawn	no current limit
6:2 FTS	64.5 ng/L	none	below limit
PFPeA	51.6 ng/L	none	below limit
8:2 FTS	41.9 ng/L	none	below limit
PFHxA	41.5 ng/L	none	below limit
PFHxS	33.2 ng/L	withdrawn	no current limit
PFHpA	30.9 ng/L	none	below limit
PFOA	22.4 ng/L	4 ng/L	above limit
PFUnA	22.2 ng/L	none	below limit
PFBS	16.5 ng/L	none	below limit
PFBA	13.5 ng/L	none	below limit
PFDA	7 ng/L	none	below limit

Counties served

Lehigh County environmental record

What this does not tell you

These are entry-point results for the system, not one tap. Water mixes between sources, sits in mains and passes through household plumbing. A certified lab test of your own tap is the only thing that answers what you drink, and it is the only route at all for a private well.

How to test your tap water

If you want to treat it

Reverse osmosis and properly specified activated carbon remove most PFAS at the tap. Certification to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58 with an explicit PFOA and PFOS claim is what separates a PFAS filter from a taste filter.

Which filters actually work

Source: EPA Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule occurrence data, with system detail from EPA SDWIS. Umwelt reports these results as published. Methodology and sources