Chatham County, Georgia: drinking water report. Chatham County – Savannah – serves about 300,000 residents on Georgia's coast.
Chatham County – Savannah – serves about 300,000 residents on Georgia's coast. The City of Savannah draws from the Upper Floridan Aquifer through a series of deep wells. The aquifer in this area is highly productive, but saltwater intrusion along the coast has been a concern for decades, with the chloride front advancing toward the city's wellfield.
Saltwater intrusion has been the defining water quality and supply issue in coastal Chatham County for over 50 years. The Georgia Environmental Protection Division and the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control have jointly managed pumping restrictions to slow the advance of the saltwater front. Savannah has invested in a surface water treatment plant drawing from Abercorn Creek to reduce groundwater dependence.
UCMR5 data shows low-level PFAS detections in county systems. Hunter Army Airfield and the former Savannah Air National Guard Base are potential PFAS sources. According to the Georgia EPD's 2024 monitoring data, PFAS levels were below proposed federal MCLs.
Savannah's transition to blended surface and groundwater changes the treatment profile over time. Water quality may shift as the source blend evolves.
Check your water for current data in your area. A reverse osmosis system handles both saltwater minerals and PFAS. Our water filter guide covers options. Pull your detailed report, and visit our Georgia page for statewide context.
Drinking water is one exposure route. These federal datasets also cover Chatham County, GA.
The EPA places Chatham County, GA in Zone 3 - the EPA's lowest-risk category, with a predicted average indoor radon level below 2 pCi/L. Zone maps predict an area's radon potential from geology and existing indoor readings; they say nothing about a specific house. Testing is the only way to know your own level.
45% of homes in Chatham County, GA were built before 1980, and 14% before 1950. Residential lead paint was banned in 1978, so housing age is the strongest available proxy for lead-paint exposure. This describes the county's housing stock, not any one home.
Modelled annual fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) in Chatham County, GA averages 9.2 µg/m³, above the EPA's annual standard of 9 µg/m³. These are CDC modelled county estimates rather than readings from a specific monitor.
How radon zones work · Air quality by county · Lead exposure guide