Santa Cruz, CA
A PlainEnviro-computed score from reported facility/violation counts, not an official EPA rating, health forecast, or population-adjusted rate. See methodology.
Environmental data for Santa Cruz in California · Population: 266,021
Santa Cruz, CA is tracked across three EPA datasets covering 2 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) facilities, 75 Safe Drinking Water Act systems, and 0 Superfund National Priorities List sites. Together these generate an environmental burden score of 23/100 (Low Risk), calibrated against national distributions for facility density, chemical release volume, Superfund concentration, and water-system health violations.
Industrial disclosures inside the county total 145 lbs of reported toxic releases under EPCRA Section 313, while 30 water systems carry an active health-based violation in the SDWIS record. EPA Air Quality System monitors logged a median AQI of 39 and a peak AQI of 80 in 2024, with 80% of observed days rated "Good" (0–50).
All figures below draw directly from federal EPA records, TRI self-reported emissions, SDWIS compliance history, NPL Hazard Ranking System scores, and AQS daily AQI summaries, and are not adjusted, weighted, or forecast. A past violation or elevated score does not itself indicate current unsafe conditions; it documents the regulatory and disclosure history publicly filed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the most recent reporting cycle.
Air Quality History (2020–2024)
EPA Air Quality Index (AQI) data showing how many days per year fall into each air quality category.
| Year | Good | Moderate | Unhealthy (SG) | Max AQI |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 293 (80%) | 73 | 0 | 80 |
| 2023 | 300 (82%) | 64 | 1 | 130 |
| 2022 | 287 (79%) | 78 | 0 | 93 |
| 2021 | 298 (82%) | 67 | 0 | 80 |
| 2020 | 261 (71%) | 85 | 6 | 624 |
Source: EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by County EPA Air Quality System (AQS) Annual AQI by County AQI categories: Good (0-50), Moderate (51-100), Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups (101-150), Unhealthy (151-200), Very Unhealthy (201-300), Hazardous (301+)
For real-time air quality readings and pollutant breakdowns in California, see the EPA's AirNow.gov.
Water Systems (75)
| System | Population | Violations |
|---|---|---|
| SANTA CRUZ WATER DEPARTMENT | 94,626 | 0 |
| WATSONVILLE, CITY OF | 65,231 | 0 |
| SOQUEL CREEK WATER DISTRICT | 40,809 | 0 |
| SAN LORENZO VALLEY WATER DIST | 21,145 | 2 |
| SCOTTS VALLEY WATER DISTRICT | 11,197 | 0 |
| PSMCSD - PAJARO | 6,500 | 0 |
| SLVWD - FELTON WATER SYSTEM | 4,340 | 2 |
| MISSION SPRINGS CONFERENCE CENTER | 1,310 | 0 |
| MT. HERMON ASSOCIATION, INC. | 1,176 | 1 |
| FOREST LAKES MWC | 1,067 | 1 |
| MONTE VISTA CHRISTIAN SCHOOL | 1,051 | 0 |
| PSMCSD - NORMCO | 928 | 0 |
| PSMCSD - SUNNY MESA | 880 | 0 |
| CEDAR LODGE RESORT | 656 | 0 |
| TROUT GULCH MUTUAL WATER COMPANY | 614 | 0 |
| RIVERVIEW MOBILE HOME ESTATES | 540 | 26 |
| PSMCSD - MOSS LANDING HARBOR WS | 520 | 0 |
| COYOTE VALLEY RV RESORT | 500 | 1 |
| PSMCSD - VEGA RD WS #01 | 438 | 0 |
| LAS CUMBRES MUTUAL WATER CO | 402 | 107 |
| MONTEREY BAY ACADEMY | 400 | 0 |
| FOREST SPRINGS | 385 | 109 |
| SAN ANDREAS MUTUAL WATER CO | 378 | 0 |
| DAVENPORT COUNTY SANITATION | 350 | 0 |
| ROUNTREE FACILITY(PREV. SHERIFF'S REHAB) | 235 | 1 |
| POND-DEROSA OAKS WC | 216 | 1 |
| RIDGE MUTUAL WATER COMPANY | 213 | 1 |
| PURESOURCE WATER, INC | 206 | 0 |
| PSMCSD - SPRINGFIELD WS | 200 | 54 |
| RANCHO SAN ANDREAS | 200 | 1 |
| BIG REDWOOD PARK WATER | 182 | 2 |
| SUNSET BEACH MUTUAL WATER CO | 182 | 0 |
| WESTERN MOBILE HOME PARK | 178 | 1 |
| MOUNT MADONNA CENTER | 170 | 0 |
| PLAZA MOBILE HOME PARK | 169 | 1 |
| PSMCSD - VIERRA ESTATES WS | 164 | 5 |
| WOODS, THE (MENDOCINO) | 157 | 0 |
| LAKE CANYON MUTUAL WATER COMPANY | 156 | 2 |
| JARDINES DEL VALLE | 130 | 2 |
| CRESTWOOD HEIGHTS WATER ASSN | 126 | 0 |
| JARVIS MUTUAL WATER SYSTEM | 125 | 1 |
| ST FRANCIS TRACT WATER SYSTEM | 118 | 0 |
| SAN MIGUEL WS #01 | 100 | 58 |
| SUMMERHILL MHP WS | 95 | 0 |
| RANCHO CORRALITOS | 87 | 0 |
| PSMCSD - LANGLEY/VALLE PACIFICO WS | 81 | 0 |
| PINE TREE LANE MUTUAL WATER CO | 80 | 0 |
| VISTA GRANDE WATER USERS ASSOCIATION | 79 | 0 |
| STRAWBERRY RD WS #06 | 78 | 2 |
| MANZANITA HILLS WA | 75 | 0 |
| BRUSH AND OLD WELL MUTUAL WATER COMPANY | 70 | 1 |
| LAUREL COMMUNITY LEAGUE | 64 | 1 |
| ELKHORN RD WS #04 | 60 | 9 |
| PSMCSD - BLACKIE RD WS | 60 | 0 |
| DELANY WC | 60 | 0 |
| ROYAL OAK PLACE WS | 60 | 0 |
| CATHEDRAL HILLS MWC, INC | 60 | 0 |
| CHETMOORE ACRES WA | 59 | 0 |
| RIVER GROVE MUTUAL WATER ASSN | 54 | 13 |
| ALLAN LANE WATER ASSOCIATION | 54 | 2 |
| APRICOT LN WS | 53 | 0 |
| VISTA ROBLES ASSOCIATION | 53 | 0 |
| BRACKEN BRAE COUNTRY CLUB | 52 | 1 |
| APTOS RIDGE MUTUAL WATER CO | 52 | 0 |
| RIDGEVIEW ESTATES MWC | 50 | 0 |
| MAHER RD WS #05 | 48 | 0 |
| BAUMANN RD WS #01 | 48 | 0 |
| SAN MIGUEL WS #03 | 45 | 0 |
| HIDDEN MEADOW MUTUAL WATER CO | 45 | 0 |
| LAKEVIEW APARTMENTS | 43 | 1 |
| KING'S MOBILE HOME PARK | 43 | 0 |
| MEADOWRIDGE MUTUAL WATER CO | 42 | 0 |
| MOUNTAIN SPRINGS MUTUAL WATER COMPANY | 40 | 0 |
| APTOS HILLS MUTUAL WATER CO | 32 | 5 |
| EMERALD CITY MUTUAL WATER CO | 26 | 0 |
TRI Facilities (2)
| # | Facility | Total Releases |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Felton Quarry | 145 lbs |
| 2 | Granite Rock Co Santa Cruz Con | 0 lbs |
Cities in Santa Cruz (2)
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the environmental risk level in Santa Cruz, California? ▼
Are there Superfund sites in Santa Cruz? ▼
How many toxic release facilities are in Santa Cruz? ▼
What is the air quality in Santa Cruz? ▼
Is the drinking water safe in Santa Cruz? ▼
What environmental agencies cover Santa Cruz? ▼
What does this county environmental profile show?
This county environmental profile rolls up EPA Toxics Release Inventory facility reports, Safe Drinking Water Information System public-water-system filings, and Superfund National Priorities List sites for the county boundary defined by the U.S. Census Bureau. Facility counts reflect facilities with a reporting address inside the county, not where downstream environmental effects may be observed. Population figures are from the most recent Census ACS 5-year estimate. The county detail page is updated whenever the upstream EPA programs publish revised data; see the methodology page for the documented ingest cadence and the editorial choices governing how aggregations are computed.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.