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Review government records associated with Big Lake, Minnesota.
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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 Big Lake, MN from EPA SDWIS.
Big Lake
PFAS detected below the official threshold used by this report.
Reviewed: active/open records as of Q1 2026
City listed in EPA records · Serves 12,413 people
Data from EPA SDWIS
PFAS screening separates EPA UCMR5 drinking-water monitoring from nearby DoD PFAS investigation-site records; EPA samples shown are from Dec 2023 to Aug 2024.
Drinking Water PFAS Monitoring
EPA UCMR5 samples public water systems. These results are separate from nearby PFAS cleanup or investigation-site records.
PFAS detections below EPA limits.
Nearby PFAS Investigation Sites
DoD records are nearby site investigations, not Big Lake drinking-water detections. Record names come from the source database and can be broad.
No DoD PFAS investigation records shown for this report.
EPA ATTAINS records identify assessed water bodies that do not meet water-quality standards for designated uses.
Big Lake-Elk River
Reported: Nov 2026
Health-relevant causes: Mercury, Pathogens
Affected uses: Ecological, Fishconsumption, 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.
Sherburne County
Assessment year: 2020
According to EPA, a cancer risk of 30-in-1-million means that for every 1 million people continuously exposed to these air toxics over a 70-year lifetime, an estimated 30 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.
St. Michael Elementary School
Annual mean: 0.043 Parts per million
EPA primary exceedance count: 1 (Ozone 8-hour 2015)
Observation year: 2025
Annual mean: 8.0 Micrograms/cubic meter (LC)
Observation year: 2025
Talahi School — St. Cloud, Minnesota
Annual mean: 0.039 Parts per million
EPA primary exceedance count: 1 (Ozone 8-hour 2015)
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 ECHO1 site with active cleanup or investigation status
160 Lake Street North, Big Lake
Reported: Feb 2026
No release reports shown in this group.
Reviewed: active/open records as of 2018
Data from EPA UST Finder
No MSHA mine or extraction site records shown for this report.
Sherburne County, MN
EPA Radon Zone Map (June 2024 release)
Sherburne 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.
Special Flood Hazard Area — 1% annual chance of flooding (100-year floodplain) with base flood elevation.
Results use an earlier stored RMP inventory. Current EPA ECHO location coverage is unverified.
EPA ECHO lists facilities linked to the Risk Management Program. Results include facilities with locations that can be matched. Records may be historical. Current operations, chemical inventories, and recent accident history are unverified.
Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensed facilities. The Emergency Planning Zone extends 10 miles for plume exposure and 50 miles for the ingestion pathway.
Reported: Mar 2026
This city report includes a facility within the 10-mile plume exposure Emergency Planning Zone.
1 reactor · Operated by Northern States Power Company - Minnesota
Reviewed: 2000-present
Health outcomes from County Health Rankings. Values shown alongside state and national averages.
Sherburne County, MinnesotaPop. 100,824
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 | 5,243 | 6,117 | 7,972 |
| Poor or Fair Health | 11.2% | 11.7% | 14.2% |
| Poor Physical Health Days | 2.9 | 2.7 | 3.3 |
| Poor Mental Health Days | 4.0 | 4.3 | 4.8 |
| Adult Smoking | 16.0% | 13.9% | 15.0% |
| Adult Obesity | 38.2% | 32.4% | 34.0% |
| Air Pollution - Particulate Matter | 6.6 | 6.1 | 7.3 |
| Drinking water violation indicator | No | N/A | N/A |
| Diabetes Prevalence | 7.5% | 7.9% | 9.6% |
| Life Expectancy | 79.4 | 79.7 | 77.6 |
EPA testing found PFAS in water samples from Big Lake. Results dated Dec 13, 2023 to Aug 26, 2024 include PFBA at 0.0098 to 0.0155 micrograms per liter and PFPeA at 0.0033 micrograms per liter.
Check with the utility that serves your address for its testing results.
The EPA drinking water records available here list no violations for Big Lake.
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 Big Lake.
The monitoring station at St. Michael Elementary School recorded an annual average of 0.043 Parts per million for ozone in 2025.
The monitoring station at St. Michael Elementary School recorded an annual average of 8 Micrograms/cubic meter (LC) for fine particles (PM2.5) in 2025.
The monitoring station at Talahi School, St. Cloud, Minnesota recorded an annual average of 0.039 Parts per million for ozone in 2025.
The radon data for Big Lake covers Sherburne 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 1 brownfield site: Big Lake City Hall.
The county data for Big Lake reports a life expectancy of 79.4 years in Sherburne County, Minnesota.
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 Big Lake reports 5,243 years of life lost to deaths before age 75 per 100,000 residents in Sherburne County, Minnesota. 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 Big Lake lists fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) at 6.6 micrograms per cubic meter in Sherburne County, Minnesota.
The figure is from the 2024 edition of County Health Rankings, a University of Wisconsin program that publishes county health statistics.