Your county health department
Arizona doesn't run a statewide free testing program that we know of. Some county health departments test wells or sell kits, so call yours first.
Arizona's private well pageManganese in Arizona well water, by county
Manganese is widespread, over the limit in 15% or more of tested wells, in 2 of the 15 Arizona counties with 10 or more tested wells. A county's share tells you how likely a problem is nearby. Only a test of your own well tells you what's in it.
How Arizona compares with the rest of the country
Across Arizona, about 1 in 12 tested wells had manganese over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L (217 of 2,566). Across all tested wells in the US it's about 1 in 7. That's less often than in the country as a whole. Counties still differ, so check yours below.
Why it matters: High levels over many years may affect the nervous system, and babies are more sensitive to it. It also leaves black stains.
Manganese dissolves out of rock and soil, especially in water with little oxygen.
Manganese in tested wells, county by county
Share of each county's tested wells with at least one result over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L. Counties need 10 or more tested wells to be listed. Widespread means 15% or more, worth checking 5 to 15%, rare under 5%.
| County | Wells tested | Wells over the limit | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yuma County | 111 | Widespread | |
| Gila County | 257 | Widespread | |
| Yavapai County | 215 | Worth checking | |
| Pima County | 160 | Worth checking | |
| Mohave County | 344 | Worth checking | |
| Apache County | 61 | Worth checking | |
| Coconino County | 63 | Worth checking | |
| La Paz County | 195 | Worth checking | |
| Maricopa County | 439 | Rare | |
| Navajo County | 117 | Rare | |
| Graham County | 135 | Rare | |
| Cochise County | 175 | Rare | |
| Santa Cruz County | 76 | Rare | |
| Pinal County | 162 | Rare | |
| Greenlee County | 56 | Rare |
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Where to get your well tested for manganese in Arizona
A lab Arizona certifies
Ask for manganese by name. Results from a certified lab count for a home sale or a loan.
Labs certified by ArizonaA mail-in kit
Fill the bottles at your kitchen tap and mail them back. We mark the kits that include manganese.
Compare kitsKeep reading about wells in Arizona
- Well water testing in Arizona: how to get tested and what turns up statewide
- Manganese in well water: where it comes from, what it does and how to remove it
- Nitrate in Arizona wells, by county
- Arsenic in Arizona wells, by county
- Uranium in Arizona wells, by county
- Lead in Arizona wells, by county
- Radon in Arizona wells, by county
Questions people ask about manganese in Arizona
Is there manganese in Arizona well water?
Manganese is widespread, over the limit in 15% or more of tested wells, in 2 of the 15 Arizona counties with 10 or more tested wells. Across Arizona, about 1 in 12 tested wells had manganese over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L (217 of 2,566). Across all tested wells in the US it's about 1 in 7. That's less often than in the country as a whole. Counties still differ, so check yours below.
Where can I get my well tested for manganese in Arizona?
Use a lab certified by Arizona for drinking water, or a mail-in kit that includes manganese from a certified lab. Some county health departments test wells too, so call yours first.
See Arizona's list of certified labs, or compare mail-in kits.
Where these numbers come from
- Lab tests: Water Quality Portal (USGS and EPA), well samples since 2000. A well counts as over if any of its tests was over the EPA health advisory of 0.3 mg/L. Wells tested for studies and monitoring, not a random sample of homes.
- Likely overstated: our own check of who tested the wells, when and where. How we check.
- State programs and links: Department of Health Services.