Well water in Pender County, North Carolina
In Pender County, <1% of 1,614 private wells tested between 1998 and 2019 had lead above the North Carolina groundwater standard (15 ug/L), according to the NC State Laboratory of Public Health (NCWELL).
1,614 private wells tested 1998 to 2019 in state summaries; 343 test results across 15 contaminants from at least 28 wells, 1941 to 2024; nitrate has the most at 65. Data refreshed September 15, 2026.
Compiled by Nick at Well Water Nerd from public records. How these pages are built
An estimated 28,231 people in Pender County get their drinking water from a private well, per USGS 2015 county water use. That is about 49% of residents.
Separately, the USGS national arsenic model estimates that 2% of the 28,231 people on private wells in Pender County draw water above 10 ug/L (the model's range is 2% to 3%), from geology and well depth rather than local tests.
What homeowner tests found
NCWELL private well summaries: private wells tested and reported to the state, 1998 to 2019. Shares are against the level the state applies to each contaminant, named in the last column; several are stricter than EPA.
What individual samples found
Each row summarizes every public sample for that contaminant inside Pender 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrate 1941 to 2024 | 65 | 23% | 0 | 0.691 | 10 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Fluoride 1948 to 2024 | 36 | 89% | 0.15 | 2.7 | 4 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Lead 2002 to 2024 | 22 | 41% | 0 | 6.87 | 15 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Uranium 2002 to 2024 | 22 | 27% | 0 | 0.205 | 30 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Copper 2002 to 2024 | 22 | 50% | 0 | 0.042 | 1.3 mg/L EPA limit | |
| Arsenic 2002 to 2024 | 22 | 27% | 0 | 0.5 | 10 ug/L EPA limit | |
| Radium (226 + 228) 2013 | 14 | 57% | 0.045 | 0.75 | 5 pCi/L EPA limit | |
| E. coli 2002 to 2022 | 11 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0 MPN/100mL EPA limit | |
| Iron 1948 to 2024 | no limit | 44 | 95% | 806 | 9,390 | 300 ug/L nuisance level |
| Sodium 1958 to 2024 | no limit | 36 | 100% | 7.28 | 1,470 | 20 mg/L health guideline |
| Manganese 1948 to 2024 | no limit | 36 | 94% | 30.4 | 285 | 300 ug/L health guideline |
Sampled fewer than 10 times, too few to summarize: PFOS (1), PFOA (1), Radon (9), Chloride (2).
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nitrate | 0%11 samples | 0%20 samples | 0%20 samples | 0%14 samples |
| Fluoride | 0%11 samples | 0%10 samples | n/a | n/a |
Nitrate has 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
Among homeowners in Pender County who sent a sample to the state lab, the health-based limits most often exceeded were lead (<1% of 1,614 wells) and arsenic (<1% of 1,614 wells). These are ordinary wells tested by their owners, so the shares are the best available picture of a typical well here, with one caveat: people test more often when they suspect a problem.
Iron and manganese exceed the state's advisory level in a sizable share of wells; these are mostly a taste, staining or diet issue rather than a toxicity one.
What to test for in Pender County
- 1Lead<1% of 1,614 local wells tested were above the North Carolina groundwater standard.
- 2Arsenic<1% of 1,614 local wells tested were above the North Carolina groundwater standard.
- 3Coliform bacteriaRecommended for every private well, every year.
- 4RadonMedian local reading is 53 pCi/L.
- 5Iron49% of 1,299 local wells tested were above the North Carolina groundwater standard.
- 6NitrateRecommended for every private well, especially near farms or septic systems.
- 7Manganese19% of 1,614 local wells tested were above the North Carolina groundwater standard.
- 8ChlorideDetected in 100% of local samples.
- 9Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)133 leaking underground storage tank sites on record locally.
Test your Pender County well for lead, arsenic 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 North Carolina: certified labs, state programs and prices.
Already have results back? Get your lab report read against the Pender County numbers, $29. Every line explained, ranked by what matters, with the fix for each.
The rock under Pender County
Northern Atlantic Coastal Plain aquifer system
Semiconsolidated sand. Coastal plain sands like these give steady yields at moderate depth. Salt water and sodium are the usual issues near the coast, and nitrate where the water table is shallow; arsenic and radon from bedrock are less common.
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 North Carolina
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 Water Testing FAQs, NCDHHS
- NCSLPH - Lab Certification, NCDHHS
Contamination sources on record in Pender County
NC DEQ records 133 leaking underground storage tank sites in Pender County, among 133 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.
- 133
- leaking underground storage tank sitesGasoline and heating oil that leaked from tanks move through groundwater as benzene, MTBE and other volatile organic compounds.
Treatment that fits the local profile
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
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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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No water treatment company serves Pender County through Well Water Nerd yet. We are signing licensed companies on county by county: they test at your tap for free, walk you through the numbers, and quote treatment only if something needs fixing. Leave your details and you are first in line. Nothing is shared until a company joins for Pender County, and you get an email naming it first.
Common questions
Is there arsenic in well water in Pender County?
Arsenic was detected in 27% of 22 public well samples in Pender 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 often should I test a private well in Pender 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 Pender 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 North Carolina dataset as CSV, every county and town, with the sources named.
Sources
- USGS Water Quality Portal: 343 samples in Pender 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.
- NCWELL private well summaries: summaries for 8 contaminants in Pender County, up to 1,614 wells each. County summaries of private well tests run by the NC State Laboratory of Public Health, 1998 to 2019, compiled by the UNC Superfund Research Program (NCWELL database). Counts are tests, not distinct wells; since 2008 every new well is tested once, so most tests are unique wells. Shares are against the NC 2L groundwater standard where one exists (manganese 50 ug/L, lead 15, iron 300) and otherwise the EPA limit. Medians are not used because more than half of results sit at the reporting limit for most analytes. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
- USGS national arsenic model (Ayotte 2017): estimated share of 28,231 people on private wells in Pender 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.
- NC DEQ regulated sites: 133 regulated sites located in Pender County. Underground storage tank incidents from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality UST Section. Retrieved September 9, 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.