Nebraska Tap Water Quality
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Overview
Omaha (Metropolitan Utilities District) and Lincoln both deliver fully compliant water, drawing on the Missouri and Platte River alluvial systems. Nebraska sits atop the High Plains aquifer, and most of the state drinks groundwater.
Agriculture defines the risk map: nitrate is the state's chief contaminant, with dozens of small towns treating or drilling new wells, and research linking high-nitrate regions to health concerns keeps it politically live. Naturally occurring uranium co-occurs with nitrate in some aquifers, an increasingly documented pairing.
Common Contaminants in Nebraska
The state's dominant violation; irrigated corn country loads the aquifer, hitting small systems and private wells hardest
Naturally occurring and mobilized by nitrate chemistry in some groundwater; several small systems have installed removal
Seasonal pulses in Platte-influenced supplies, generally within limits
Violations & Compliance
Omaha and Lincoln are consistently compliant. Nitrate exceedances in small systems account for most enforcement, with state programs funding treatment, blending, and well relocation.
Water Hardness in Nebraska
Very hard, typically 150–300 mg/L. Ogallala and Platte Valley groundwater, the source for nearly all Nebraska systems including Lincoln and Omaha's wellfields, is hard to very hard.
Hardness affects taste, limescale, and soap — not safety. Compare levels across all cities or read the water hardness guide.
City Water Reports in Nebraska
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources & References
The safety rating and guidance on this page draw on the following sources. See our full methodology.
- •US EPA Safe Drinking Water Act regulations
- •EWG Tap Water Database
- •The utility's most recent Consumer Confidence Report (CCR)
- •WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality