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Review government records associated with Cortez, Colorado.
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Check your water bill for your utility name and confirm the reporting year. See EPA’s guide to finding your annual water quality report.
Public water-system records for Cortez, CO from EPA SDWIS.
Cortez City of
No active drinking-water issues detected in EPA SDWIS.
Reviewed: active/open records as of Q1 2026
City listed in EPA records · Serves 8,770 people
Data from EPA SDWIS
Reviewed: source records as of Q1 2026
EPA UCMR5 — No PFAS detection records shown for these water systems
Open data source: EPA UCMR5DoD PFAS — No investigation records shown for this report
Open data source: DoD PFASEPA ATTAINS records identify assessed water bodies that do not meet water-quality standards for designated uses.
Highline Ditch-Mcelmo Creek
Reported: Nov 2026
Health-relevant causes: Metals (other Than Mercury), Pathogens
Affected uses: Drinkingwater, Ecological, Recreation
Data from EPA ATTAINS
NPDES permits regulate pollutant discharges into U.S. waterways. Facilities must report compliance quarterly.
No NPDES-permitted facility records with current violation flags surfaced for this city report.
Reviewed: active/open records as of Q4 2025
Data from EPA ECHO
To investigate water contamination, check the sampling locations, dates and results below. For tap water records, see Drinking water quality above.
Reviewed: source records as of 2026
Review historical EPA air pollution records, including monitoring and facility emissions where available. For current conditions, check local air quality on AirNow.
Montezuma County
Assessment year: 2020
According to EPA, a cancer risk of 10-in-1-million means that for every 1 million people continuously exposed to these air toxics over a 70-year lifetime, an estimated 10 may develop cancer from that exposure. This is in addition to cancer risk from all other causes.
Top modeled source groups
Data from EPA AirToxScreen
No EPA nonattainment designation records shown for this report.
EPA annual monitor summaries describe past measurements. For current air quality, see AirNow.
Cortez - Health Dept
Annual mean: 0.045 Parts per million
Observation year: 2025
Mesa Verde Np
Annual mean: 0.049 Parts per million
EPA primary exceedance count: 1 (Ozone 8-hour 2015)
Observation year: 2025
Towaocumu2
Annual mean: 0.047 Parts per million
Observation year: 2025
Data from EPA AQS
Reviewed: source records as of Q4 2025
Reviewed: source query run Nov 2026
Brownfield sites are properties where redevelopment is complicated by the presence of hazardous substances.
Open data source: Search EPA ECHO2 sites with active cleanup or investigation status
601 North Mildred Road, Cortez
Reported: Feb 2026
30 N Ash Street, Cortez
Reported: Feb 2026
Facilities with hazardous-waste handler records under RCRA in the reviewed 5-mile city-center search area. Active handler status is separate from air, water, or other ECHO compliance violations, which are shown in their own sections.
Active RCRA handler records in the reviewed city search area
Release reports
Reported: Dec 2021
Data from EPA UST Finder
Sites regulated by the Mine Safety and Health Administration, including mines, sand and gravel operations, and portable crushers. Status and type are from the MSHA Mine Data Retrieval System. Records with active/intermittent status dates older than 5 years are shown as older records rather than current active sites.
No records shown in this group.
Reviewed: status dates within last 5 years
Data from MSHA
Montezuma County, CO
EPA Radon Zone Map (June 2024 release)
Montezuma County is EPA Radon Zone 1 (highest potential). EPA defines Zone 1 counties as having predicted average indoor screening levels above 4 pCi/L.
Radon levels can vary from home to home, so EPA recommends testing the property to know its indoor level.
FEMA flood zones describe mapped flood hazards. Look up a specific address with FEMA.
No FEMA flood-zone records shown for this report.
Results use an earlier stored RMP inventory. Current EPA ECHO location coverage is unverified.
No EPA ECHO RMP facility records with a usable location matched this city report.
Health outcomes from County Health Rankings. Values shown alongside state and national averages.
Montezuma County, ColoradoPop. 26,468
County Health Rankings edition: 2024
Premature Death
Poor or Fair Health
Poor Physical Health Days
Poor Mental Health Days
Adult Smoking
Adult Obesity
Air Pollution - Particulate Matter
Drinking water violation indicator
Diabetes Prevalence
Life Expectancy
| Indicator | County | State | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premature Death | 12,186 | 6,994 | 7,972 |
| Poor or Fair Health | 15.2% | 12.8% | 14.2% |
| Poor Physical Health Days | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.3 |
| Poor Mental Health Days | 5.2 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Adult Smoking | 17.8% | 12.1% | 15.0% |
| Adult Obesity | 27.1% | 25.1% | 34.0% |
| Air Pollution - Particulate Matter | 4.2 | 4.5 | 7.3 |
| Drinking water violation indicator | No | N/A | N/A |
| Diabetes Prevalence | 8.2% | 6.5% | 9.6% |
| Life Expectancy | 75.1 | 79.0 | 77.6 |
This report does not have PFAS sample results for the candidate water systems in Cortez.
Check with the utility that serves your address for its testing results.
EPA drinking water records on this page list 2 violations for the City of Cortez.
Check your water bill to identify the utility serving your address. Ask that utility about current drinking water advisories.
Nearby EPA monitoring stations provide annual air quality measurements for Cortez.
The monitoring station at Cortez-Health Dept recorded an annual average of 0.045 Parts per million for ozone in 2025.
The monitoring station at Mesa Verde Np recorded an annual average of 0.049 Parts per million for ozone in 2025.
The monitoring station at TowaocUMU2 recorded an annual average of 0.047 Parts per million for ozone in 2025.
The radon data for Cortez covers Montezuma County. EPA places this area in Zone 1, with a predicted average indoor radon screening level above 4 picocuries per liter.
No Superfund sites were returned for this city report.
This city report shows 3 brownfield sites: Casino Warehouse; Children S Kiva Montessori School; Cortez Fire Protection District.
EPA Superfund recordsView on EPA ECHOView on EPA ECHOView on EPA ECHO
The county data for Cortez reports a life expectancy of 75.1 years in Montezuma County, Colorado.
The figure is from the 2024 edition of County Health Rankings, a University of Wisconsin program that publishes county health statistics.
The county data for Cortez reports 12,186 years of life lost to deaths before age 75 per 100,000 residents in Montezuma County, Colorado. This measure adds up the years lost to early deaths and adjusts for differences in population age.
The figure is from the 2024 edition of County Health Rankings, a University of Wisconsin program that publishes county health statistics.
The county data for Cortez lists fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) at 4.2 micrograms per cubic meter in Montezuma County, Colorado.
The figure is from the 2024 edition of County Health Rankings, a University of Wisconsin program that publishes county health statistics.