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Hamilton Drinking Water Quality
By OpenStats · Built from official Canadian sources
Direct municipal dataB
Water quality grade
Good
Graded against Health Canada drinking water guidelines
Lead within guidelinepH in range
Hardness vs provincial average120 mg/L · prov. avg 182 mg/L
Lead vs provincial average0 μg/L · prov. avg 0.4 μg/L
Hardness
120 mg/L
Lead
0 μg/L
≤ 5 μg/L
pH
7.7
6.5–8.5 range
Hardness
120 mg/L
Hard
Lead
0 μg/L
Max: 5 μg/L
pH
7.7
6.5–8.5
Chlorine
0.5 mg/L
Max: 4 mg/L
From source to sink
Where Hamilton water comes from
Lakes, rivers, wells, and treatment plants behind the kitchen tap, in plain language. Chemistry grades above are a separate lab snapshot; this section is the route the water travels.
Open the full tap storyOn the map
Where Hamilton water lives
Source waters and treatment plants pinned from published utility names. Open a pin below for the full OpenStreetMap view.
- CityHamilton
Municipal service area
- Source waterLake Ontario
Near Hamilton intakes
- Treatment plantWoodward Avenue Water Treatment Plant
Approximate pin near Hamilton (exact plant coordinates pending)
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors. Pins are approximate for orientation, not legal survey points.
Where it starts
Mixed surface and groundwater
Research confidence: high
Named source waters
- Lake Ontario
- Municipal groundwater wells (Freelton, Greensville and other communal systems)
- Town of Grimsby supply (Fifty Road subsystem)
Treatment plants
Woodward Avenue Water Treatment Plant
Primary Lake Ontario plant for the Hamilton/Woodward subsystem. Dual intakes about 915-945 m offshore; rated capacity 909,000 m³/day. Clarification, GAC filtration, chloramination, fluoridation, and phosphate corrosion control.
How it reaches your street
Woodward subsystem serves most of urban Hamilton (about 569,000 residents) plus parts of Haldimand and Halton via 22 pumping stations, 10 reservoirs, elevated tanks, and roughly 2,130 km of watermains. Smaller communal well systems and the Fifty Road (Grimsby) subsystem serve limited pockets.
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Reading this page
Hamilton's most recent drinking water sample (2026-07-22) reports hardness of 120 mg/L, classified as hard, and pH 7.7, drawn from a surface water source and treated at Hamilton Water Treatment Plant. Lead measured 0 μg/L and fluoride 0.5 mg/L.
Free chlorine measured 0.5 mg/L in this sample. No E. coli was detected in this sample.
Hamilton's hardness of 120 mg/L is below the Ontario average of 182 mg/L across 51 tracked municipalities, with a provincial average pH of 7.5.
These readings summarize a single compliance snapshot, not a certification of the water reaching your tap. Test your own water periodically, especially on a private well, and consider a softener if hardness is classified hard or very hard.
How to use this page: read the headline metrics first, then where the water comes from (map and tap story), then the parameter table and source footer.
Health parameters meet Health Canada limits; turbidity above the 1 NTU typical target.
Health parameters meet Health Canada limits; turbidity exceeds the typical 1 NTU aesthetic target.
Figure 1 · From source to sink
How drinking water reaches your tap
Compared to provincial average
Ontario · 51 cities in sample
Hardness (city vs Ontario avg)120 mg/L
pH (city vs Ontario avg)7.7
Lead (city vs Ontario avg)0 μg/L
Fluoride (city vs Ontario avg)0.5 mg/L
Provincial average: hardness 182 mg/L · pH 7.5 · lead 0.4 μg/L · fluoride 0.6 mg/L
Full parameters
| Parameter | Reading | Health Canada guideline | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardness | 120 mg/L | No health limit (aesthetic) | Compliant |
| pH | 7.7 | 6.5–8.5 | Compliant |
| Lead | 0 μg/L | ≤ 5 μg/L | Compliant |
| Fluoride | 0.5 mg/L | ≤ 1.5 mg/L | Compliant |
| Chlorine (free) | 0.5 mg/L | ≤ 4 mg/L | Compliant |
| Turbidity | 2.5 NTU | ≤ 1 NTU (typical target) | Exceeds guideline |
Alberta water licences
WaterRegister.ca
On a private well or holding an Alberta water allocation licence? Water Register maps EPA licence records, transfer comparables, and watershed context across the province.
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Source · City of Hamilton drinking water quality page (Woodward system). Last updated 2026-07-22. Refreshed on the site's automated schedule.