Ventura County tap water: hardness, PFAS and lead

Ventura County, California has about 835,427 residents (Census 2024 estimate) and 68 community water systems in EPA records. The largest local system is Oxnard Water Dept, serving about 200,232 people from surface water.

✓ 0 of 6 largest systems with health-based violationsPFAS detected at 1 of 6 sampled systemsHardness 27.5 gpg (low confidence)

Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.

How hard is Ventura County water?

Oxnard Water Dept Estimate: untreated local water, not your tap · Low confidence

27.5 gpg (470 mg/L), very hard

Ventura County: median of 1,421 results from 332 monitoring sites (streams and wells). Utilities may blend or treat water, so your tap can differ.

Source: Hard Water Map county data, samples through 2022

County estimates: Hard Water Map (hardwatermap.com), CC BY 4.0, derived from the USGS/EPA Water Quality Portal; file generated 2026-07-22. License

Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.

Softener size at 27.5 gpg

For a 3-person home using 57 gallons per person per day and regenerating weekly, you'd remove about 32,918 grains between regenerations. Suggested size: 40,000 grain. This uses a low-confidence county estimate, so confirm with a test first.

Estimate only. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.

Open the softener calculator with 27.5 gpg

Largest water systems in Ventura County

The 6 biggest of 68 community water systems on EPA records for this county. Service areas don't follow county lines; your water bill names your provider.

Oxnard Water Dept

CA5610007 · serves about 200,232 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected

Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2025-01-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

EPA ECHO record

Ventura Water Department

CA5610017 · serves about 112,285 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detectionPFAS detected (2 types)

Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2024-01-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

  • PFBS: highest sample 3.1 ppt (1 of 12 samples); no individual limit; counted in EPA's PFAS mixture (hazard index) limit
  • PFHxS: highest sample 3 ppt (1 of 12 samples); federal limit 10.0 ppt as a running annual average, also counted in EPA's PFAS mixture (hazard index) limit (currently in effect; EPA has proposed removing it)

EPA ECHO record

Ventura Wwd No. 8 - Simi Valley

CA5610023 · serves about 94,736 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected

Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2023-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

EPA ECHO record

Cal American Water Co

CA5610040 · serves about 66,809 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below action level✓ No PFAS detected

Lead 90th percentile: 3 ppb (period starting 2022-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

EPA ECHO record

City of Thousand Oaks Water Department

CA5610020 · serves about 54,770 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected

Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2023-01-01) Older result. Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

EPA ECHO record

Camarillo Water Dept

CA5610019 · serves about 47,701 people · Surface water

✓ No health-based violations✓ Lead below detection✓ No PFAS detected

Lead 90th percentile: <DL (below the lab detection/reporting limit; reported as 0) (period starting 2025-07-01). Action level: 15 ppb (drops to 10 ppb on Nov 1, 2027).

EPA ECHO record

Public-record figures, not a test of your tap. Not 100% accurate or guaranteed. Confirm with a water test, your utility or a qualified pro before you buy or act.

A PFAS detection is not a violation. Federal limits (4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS) apply to running annual averages, with compliance required by 2029. In May 2026 EPA proposed extending the PFOA/PFOS deadline to 2031 and removing other PFAS limits; not final as of 2026-10-21.

Test your own tap

These are public records for whole systems. Your home's pipes, fixtures and any private well can change what you drink. A certified lab test or a hardness test strip gives you your own numbers. Then use our PFAS and lead filter selector to see which certifications to look for.

Common questions about Ventura County water

Is tap water in Ventura County safe to drink?

None of the 6 largest systems here have a health-based violation in EPA records since October 2021. Oxnard Water Dept's most recent lead 90th percentile was below the lab detection limit (2025), below the 15 ppb action level. Public records can't guarantee what comes out of your tap, especially with older plumbing, so a home test is the surest check.

How hard is the water in Ventura County?

There's no published utility figure in our data, but untreated local stream and well samples in Ventura County have a median of about 27.5 grains per gallon (470 mg/L, very hard). That's a low-confidence estimate of source water, not your tap, so test before you buy equipment. For a 3-person home at 27.5 gpg, our softener calculator suggests a 40,000 grain unit as a starting point.

Is there PFAS in Ventura County water?

1 of the 6 sampled systems listed here detected at least one PFAS in EPA's UCMR 5 testing. A detection isn't a violation: federal PFAS limits apply to running annual averages starting in 2029.

Which water system serves my address in Ventura County?

Most homes are served by Oxnard Water Dept or one of the other systems listed on this page, but service areas don't follow county lines. Your water bill names your provider, and its annual Consumer Confidence Report has the full test results.

More California counties

Sources for this page

Data as of October 21, 2026. Figures are copied from public records and combined with our own calculations; they can be out of date or wrong. Tapped Out isn't affiliated with any utility or the EPA. Written and reviewed by the Tapped Out team. How we calculate · All sources.