Well water in Cherokee County, Iowa
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Testing recommended
tested well samples in Cherokee County exceeded the EPA limit for radium (226 + 228) (5 pCi/L), based on public data from USGS Water Quality Portal.
1,462 test results across 12 contaminants from at least 75 wells, 1910 to 2016; chloride has the most at 199. Data refreshed September 15, 2026.
Compiled by Nick at Well Water Nerd from public records. How these pages are built
An estimated 1,940 people in Cherokee County get their drinking water from a private well, per USGS 2015 county water use. That is about 17% of residents.
Separately, the USGS national arsenic model estimates that 4% of the 1,940 people on private wells in Cherokee County draw water above 10 ug/L (the model's range is 3% to 5%), from geology and well depth rather than local tests.
What individual samples found
Each row summarizes every public sample for that contaminant inside Cherokee County. Above limit means above the EPA maximum contaminant level; where EPA has no enforceable limit, the row shows a health guideline or nuisance level instead.
| Contaminant | Above limit | Samples | Detected | Median | Highest | Limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radium (226 + 228) 1974 to 2012 | 121 | 77% | 2 | 9 | 5 pCi/L EPA limit | |
| Nitrate 1934 to 2006 | 173 | 58% | 0.02 | 52.7 | 10 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Fluoride 1934 to 2013 | 184 | 100% | 0.7 | 2.2 | 4 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Lead 1973 to 2013 | 80 | 5% | 0 | 1 | 15 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Copper 1973 to 2013 | 80 | 13% | 0 | 0.03 | 1.3 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Arsenic 1973 to 2013 | 80 | 31% | 0 | 10 | 10 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Chloride 1910 to 2016 | no limit | 199 | 91% | 3 | 43 | 250 mg/L nuisance level |
| Iron 1910 to 2013 | no limit | 182 | 95% | 1,100 | 35,000 | 300 ug/L nuisance level |
| Manganese 1934 to 2013 | no limit | 179 | 88% | 180 | 1,600 | 300 ug/L health guideline |
| Sodium 1952 to 2013 | no limit | 168 | 100% | 43 | 280 | 20 mg/L health guideline |
| Radon 1982 to 2005 | no limit | 13 | 31% | 0 | 415 | 2,000 pCi/L health guideline |
Sampled fewer than 10 times, too few to summarize: Uranium (3).
Over time
Share of samples above the limit by period. A cell needs ten samples to show; a comparison needs twenty in each period. Later periods sample fewer wells, and often the ones already known to have a problem.
| Contaminant | before 2000 | 2000s | 2010s | 2020s |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fluoride | 0%147 samples | 0%33 samples | n/a | n/a |
| Nitrate | 3%154 samples | 0%19 samples | n/a | n/a |
| Radium (226 + 228) | 26%31 samples | 1%86 samples | n/a | n/a |
| Lead | 0%49 samples | 0%27 samples | n/a | n/a |
| Copper | 0%49 samples | 0%27 samples | n/a | n/a |
| Arsenic | 0%49 samples | 0%27 samples | n/a | n/a |
Radium (226 + 228) above the limit in Cherokee County fell from 26% of 31 samples before 2000 to 1% of 86 in the 2000s.
Fluoride, lead, copper, arsenic have held within a few points between the two most recent periods with enough samples.
Closer than the county
See the sampled wells near your address
The same records, drawn around one point: which wells within a few miles were sampled and what they found, how deep the wells next to you were drilled, and any leaking tank or cleanup site within a mile.
Check my addressWhat this means
The contaminants most often above their limit here are radium (226 + 228) (7% of 121 samples) and nitrate (2% of 173 samples). A well next door can differ sharply from yours because bedrock fractures, well depth and plumbing all matter, so these rates describe the area, not your tap.
Chloride, Iron, and Manganese are widespread in local groundwater. They are mainly a staining and taste problem, but high manganese also carries a health advisory for infants.
What to test for in Cherokee County
- 1Radium (226 + 228)7% of 121 local samples were above the limit.
- 2Nitrate2% of 173 local samples were above the limit.
- 3Coliform bacteriaRecommended for every private well, every year.
- 4FluorideDetected in 100% of local samples.
- 5IronDetected in 95% of local samples.
- 6ChlorideDetected in 91% of local samples.
- 7ManganeseDetected in 88% of local samples.
- 8Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)33 leaking underground storage tank sites on record locally.
- 9Metals panel4 hazardous waste sites on record locally.
Test your Cherokee County well for radium (226 + 228), nitrate and coliform bacteria
Certified lab analysis of your own tap water, bottles and prepaid return shipping included. The Essential well panel covers arsenic, uranium, nitrate, lead, copper, manganese, iron, sodium and bacteria; radon and PFAS are add-ons.
Order the Tap Score well water test kit, from $209Already tested? Upload the report
Just want bacteria checked first? Tap Score coliform and E. coli test, $99. Coliform and E. coli are the tests every well needs every year.
Want a quick look before paying for a lab? Home well water test strips on Amazon check hardness, iron, pH and nitrate in minutes. They are a screen, not a result: arsenic, bacteria, uranium and PFAS need a certified lab.
Affiliate links: the merchant pays us a commission and the price is the same for you. It does not change what the data above says. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Where to get a well tested in Iowa: certified labs, state programs and prices.
Already have results back? Get your lab report read against the Cherokee County numbers, $29. Every line explained, ranked by what matters, with the fix for each.
The rock under Cherokee County
Not a principal aquifer
The USGS map places this area outside any principal aquifer, which usually means wells here draw from fractured bedrock or thin local deposits rather than a large regional aquifer. Bedrock wells of that kind are where arsenic, radon and uranium turn up, and yields vary from well to well.
Classification from the USGS Principal Aquifers of the United States (national map, 2003 edition, GIS release 2015), read at the county centroid. A single well can sit in a different unit, especially near a boundary.
Official help in Iowa
Two places to start that are not selling anything: the state program that answers private well questions, and its list of labs certified to run drinking water tests. A certified lab is the difference between a result you can act on and a number.
- Private Well Program, Iowa DNR
- LabCert - List of Certified Labs, Iowa DNR
Contamination sources on record in Cherokee County
Iowa DNR records 33 leaking underground storage tank sites and 4 hazardous waste sites in Cherokee County, among 49 regulated sites in total. Groundwater does not follow property lines, so a well within a few hundred feet of one of these is worth testing for what that site could release.
- 33
- leaking underground storage tank sitesGasoline and heating oil that leaked from tanks move through groundwater as benzene, MTBE and other volatile organic compounds.
- 4
- hazardous waste sitesSolvents, degreasers and metals from industrial sites can travel far in fractured bedrock.
- 2
- lined landfills and transfer facilities
- 2
- other remediation projects
- 8
- other solid waste facilities
Treatment that fits the local profile
Radium (226 + 228)
Water softener (cation exchange); Point-of-use reverse osmosis
Nitrate
Point-of-use reverse osmosis; Anion exchange; Distillation
Iron
Oxidizing filter whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Aeration plus filtration
Manganese
Oxidizing filter (greensand, birm) whole-house; Water softener (low levels); Point-of-use reverse osmosis
Systems we would look at first
Some links below are affiliate links. If you buy through one, the merchant pays us a commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change which products we list or what the data says.
For radium (226 + 228)
Under-sink reverse osmosis system
under-sink or countertop, about $300
Look for NSF/ANSI 58 certification listing the contaminant you need removed.
For nitrate
Aquasana SmartFlow reverse osmosis
under-sink or countertop, about $225
Certified to NSF/ANSI 58 and 53 to reduce arsenic (96%, pentavalent), fluoride (90%), lead (99%), nitrate, nitrite and PFOA/PFOS at the kitchen tap, with a remineralizer.
For iron
Iron and manganese oxidizing filter
whole-house, at the point of entry, about $1,800
Air-injection or greensand media; fixes staining at the source.
Free, no obligation
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Common questions
Is there arsenic in well water in Cherokee County?
Arsenic was detected in 31% of 80 public well samples in Cherokee County, and 0% were above the EPA limit of 10 ug/L. Arsenic has no taste or smell; a lab test is the only way to know your level.
How high is radon in well water in Cherokee County?
The median radon level across 13 public samples in Cherokee County was 0 pCi/L, with a high of 415 pCi/L. New Hampshire recommends treatment above 2,000 pCi/L.
How often should I test a private well in Cherokee County?
Test for bacteria and nitrate every year. Test once for arsenic, uranium, radon, fluoride, manganese and PFAS, then again every three to five years or after any change in taste, color, or plumbing.
Counties near Cherokee County
Closest first. Groundwater does not stop at a line on a map, so the next county over is a fair second opinion.
Want the numbers themselves? Download the Iowa dataset as CSV, every county and town, with the sources named.
Sources
- USGS Water Quality Portal: 1,462 samples in Cherokee County. Data from the Water Quality Portal, a service of USGS, EPA and USDA; groundwater samples collected by USGS and cooperators. Retrieved September 3, 2026.
- USGS national arsenic model (Ayotte 2017): estimated share of 1,940 people on private wells in Cherokee County above 10 ug/L of arsenic, from geology, well depth and land use. County estimates of domestic well users with arsenic above 10 ug/L from the USGS national logistic regression model (Ayotte, Medalie and Qi, 2017), with private well population from the USGS 2015 county water-use compilation (Dieter and others, 2018). Retrieved September 15, 2026.
- Iowa DNR regulated sites: 49 regulated sites located in Cherokee County. Contaminated sites, solid waste facilities and leaking underground storage tank sites from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved September 18, 2026.
Non-detects count as samples and are treated as zero when computing medians. Exactly at the limit counts as not above it. A sample belongs to the town containing the well's reported coordinates.