Anderson County, South Carolina: drinking water report. Anderson County serves about 205,000 residents in the South Carolina Upstate.
Anderson County serves about 205,000 residents in the South Carolina Upstate. Anderson Regional Joint Water System draws from Lake Hartwell, a large Army Corps of Engineers reservoir on the Savannah River at the Georgia-South Carolina border. The lake provides abundant water, though it has a history of contamination from upstream industrial sites.
Lake Hartwell was contaminated with PCBs from the former Sangamo Weston/Schlumberger facility in Pickens, SC – a Superfund site whose contamination entered the lake through Town Creek. While PCB levels have declined since the plant closed, fish consumption advisories remain in effect for parts of the lake. The contamination is primarily in sediments and fish tissue rather than treated drinking water.
UCMR5 data shows minimal PFAS detections in Anderson County systems. According to the South Carolina DHEC's 2024 monitoring data, the drinking water system met all federal standards.
Anderson County's drinking water treatment effectively removes contaminants from Lake Hartwell water. The PCB issue is primarily an ecological and fish consumption concern.
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