Statewide Compliance and Testing

• Overall Compliance: Approximately 99% of Vermont’s public water systems meet federal Safe Drinking Water Act standards, serving about 60% of residents through regulated community water systems with consistent monitoring and treatment. You can check your own water quality data at our water quality checker.
• New 2026 PFAS Rule: Vermont’s updated Water Supply Rule, effective January 1, 2026, expands PFAS regulation beyond the original five compounds, introduces a Hazard Index for PFAS mixtures, and requires approximately 550 drinking water systems to monitor under the new framework. Division staff are actively building individual system monitoring schedules.
• Infrastructure Investment: Since 2022, Vermont has received over $175 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding for water infrastructure — including $21 million in FY2025 alone — covering PFAS treatment, lead pipe replacement, and system upgrades. Vermont requires an estimated $2 billion in water infrastructure investment over the next decade.

Major Water Sources and Regional Systems

• Lake Champlain System: Serves nearly 200,000 people across the Champlain Valley, including Burlington and surrounding communities, with comprehensive source water protection and advanced treatment. The Burlington Vermont Supreme Court reinstated a 2025 PFAS lawsuit from a dairy farmer whose land was contaminated by AFFF foam runoff from Burlington International Airport.
• Connecticut River Valley: Multiple smaller systems serve eastern Vermont communities with groundwater and surface water sources, requiring enhanced coordination for emerging contaminant monitoring. Visit our New Hampshire water quality page for information on the shared Connecticut River watershed.
• Private Well Reliance: Approximately 40% of Vermonters rely on private wells or springs. There is no legal requirement to test private wells for PFAS in Vermont — making individual testing critical, particularly in areas near former industrial sites, airports, or fire training facilities.

PFAS Contamination Response (2025–2026)

• Bennington: Contamination Still Rising: Bennington College research presented at a public meeting in March 2025 confirmed PFAS concentrations are increasing in the majority of monitored private wells in Bennington and North Bennington — contradicting earlier predictions by the polluter (Saint-Gobain) that levels would peak in 2016 and decline. The region continues to be described as facing contamination for “centuries.”
• Water Line Extensions: In April 2025, the Town of Bennington extended municipal water lines to additional households with contaminated wells, providing residents access to clean public water supply.
• Vermont’s Remediation Position: Despite federal EPA rollbacks under the Trump administration (January 2025), Vermont DEC confirmed it is continuing to remediate all contaminated systems down to 4 ppt — the level set by the Biden-era EPA rule — regardless of federal regulatory direction. The state is evaluating whether to adopt EPA standards, maintain its own, or pursue a hybrid approach.
• Legal Accountability: Vermont has established precedent-setting agreements with Saint-Gobain and continues pursuing litigation. In August 2025, the Vermont Supreme Court reinstated a PFAS lawsuit against the City of Burlington over airport AFFF contamination — one of the few such cases against a municipality rather than a manufacturer.

Clean Water Initiative Progress

• Phosphorus Reduction: Vermont has invested $420 million in clean water projects over eight years, achieving 20% of Lake Champlain’s phosphorus reduction goals and 14% of Lake Memphremagog’s targets. PFAS have also been detected in Lake Memphremagog, prompting extensive new monitoring by DEC.
• Agricultural Partnership: The state’s water quality programs work closely with farmers to implement conservation practices, reducing nutrient runoff while supporting agricultural viability. Act 36 (2023) banned PFAS-containing Class B firefighting foam, and Act 131 (January 2026) extends product restrictions to cleaning products, fluorinated containers, and dental floss.
• Climate Resilience: Vermont’s water infrastructure improvements increasingly focus on flood resilience and extreme weather adaptation following significant climate-related water quality challenges in recent years. Stay informed with our water alert news feed.

Looking Forward: 2026 and Beyond

Vermont’s water quality landscape is actively shifting in 2026. The new Water Supply Rule expanding PFAS regulation is now in force, federal PFAS policy is in flux under the Trump administration, and Bennington contamination continues to worsen rather than improve. Vermont DEC’s decision to continue remediating to 4 ppt regardless of federal rollbacks, combined with the state’s significant Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding pipeline and expanded product-use restrictions under Act 131, positions Vermont as one of the most proactive states for PFAS management. However, the 40% of Vermonters on unregulated private wells remain the state’s most significant water safety challenge for the foreseeable future. See our water filter recommendations if you’re concerned about PFAS or other contaminants in your home.