Akron was once synonymous with American rubber manufacturing. Goodyear, Firestone, Goodrich — they all built empires here, and for much of the 20th century, their plants lined the banks of the Cuyahoga River and its tributaries. That legacy is baked into the region’s environmental history, including its water quality. While Akron’s water system has worked hard to modernize and comply with evolving EPA standards, the industrial past and a surface water source with high organic content continue to shape what comes out of the tap.
The Cuyahoga River and Its Recovery
Most Americans know the Cuyahoga River as the river that caught fire — most famously in 1969, a fire that became a symbol of industrial pollution and helped catalyze the Clean Water Act. What’s less known is that the river had caught fire more than a dozen times before that, going back to 1868. The industrial discharges from Akron and Cleveland’s steel and rubber industries had turned the river into a chemical slurry.
The Clean Water Act passed in 1972, and the decades since have brought genuine improvement. The Cuyahoga River no longer burns. Fish populations have returned to many stretches. The lower Cuyahoga, near Cleveland’s Flats, hosts a recovering aquatic ecosystem. But recovery is not the same as clean. Sediment contamination from decades of industrial discharge persists in many areas, and urban and industrial stormwater still contributes pollutant loads when it rains.
Akron draws its primary drinking water from Lake Rockwell and Lake Rockwell’s feeder reservoirs in the Portage Lakes system — surface water sources, not the Cuyahoga directly. But the watershed feeding these reservoirs has its own history of industrial and urban influence.
What the Data Shows
Akron’s water is treated at the Akron Water Reclamation Facility and several other treatment facilities. The city’s Consumer Confidence Reports have consistently shown compliance with EPA Safe Drinking Water Act standards. However, the data reveals patterns worth understanding:
Disinfection Byproducts: This is the most consistent data point of interest in Akron’s CCRs. Lake Rockwell is a surface water source with naturally high levels of organic matter from decomposing leaves, plant material, and soil runoff. When chlorine is added during treatment to disinfect the water, it reacts with these organic compounds to form trihalomethanes (TTHMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs) — regulated disinfection byproducts associated with increased cancer risk at chronic exposure levels.
Akron’s TTHM and HAA levels have historically run toward the upper portions of the EPA’s compliance ranges, though the city has maintained compliance. The EPA’s MCL for TTHMs is 80 micrograms per liter and for HAAs is 60 micrograms per liter. Systems with high organic content in source water face a structural challenge here — more disinfection means more DBPs, but less disinfection means higher microbial risk. [NEEDS VERIFICATION: most recent Akron CCR TTHM/HAA annual averages]
Lead: Akron, like most older Midwest cities, has an aging distribution system with lead service lines connecting some homes. Ohio EPA requires lead and copper testing under the Lead and Copper Rule. Akron has been working on lead service line replacement programs, but the pace of replacement matters. Homes in older neighborhoods, particularly those built before 1986, are most likely to have lead service lines or lead-containing solder in household plumbing.
Nitrates: Agricultural runoff from the Portage Lakes watershed contributes nitrates. Levels in Akron’s system have generally been well below the EPA MCL of 10 mg/L, but they’re detectable.
Rubber Industry Chemical Legacy
The rubber manufacturing era left specific chemical fingerprints in the Akron environment. Compounds like benzene, toluene, and various solvents were used extensively in rubber processing. Some of these contaminated soil and groundwater near former plant sites. Several former Goodyear and other rubber company properties in Akron have been subject to brownfield remediation.
Specific industrial chemicals associated with rubber manufacturing, including nitrosamines and various organic solvents, have been detected in groundwater near former plant sites. These sites are largely separated from the municipal water supply, which draws from surface reservoirs, but residents on private wells near former industrial areas should take this seriously. [NEEDS VERIFICATION: current brownfield status of specific Akron rubber plant sites]
Combined Sewer Overflows
Akron, like many older Midwest cities, operates a combined sewer system in parts of the city — one pipe that carries both stormwater runoff and sanitary sewage. During heavy rain events, when the system’s capacity is exceeded, combined sewer overflows (CSOs) discharge untreated or partially treated wastewater directly into local waterways, including the Cuyahoga River.
CSOs carry bacteria, pathogens, and other pollutants. Ohio EPA tracks CSO events, and Akron has been working on long-term control plans to reduce CSO frequency and volume. These overflows don’t directly affect the drinking water intake (which is upstream at reservoir sources), but they matter for recreational water quality and downstream aquatic health.
What Residents Can Do
- Test for lead. If you live in a home built before 1986, or if you’re not sure whether your home has a lead service line, request a lead test from your water utility or hire an independent certified lab. Akron has programs to assist with this.
- Filter for DBPs. If you’re concerned about disinfection byproduct levels, activated carbon filtration at the point of use effectively reduces TTHMs and HAAs.
- Check your CCR. Akron publishes annual Consumer Confidence Reports. Review the TTHM and HAA sections specifically, and look at whether the annual averages are creeping toward the MCL or staying well below.
- Run your tap before use. Let the water run for 30 seconds to 2 minutes before drinking, especially in the morning, to flush water that may have been sitting in lead-containing pipes.
- Private well users should test comprehensively. If you’re in an area near former industrial sites, test for VOCs, benzene, toluene, and other solvents as well as standard parameters.
Water Treatment Options
For DBP reduction, activated carbon is the key technology. Under-sink carbon block filters or whole-house systems with NSF/ANSI 53 certification for DBP reduction are effective. Reverse osmosis systems also reduce DBPs.
For lead, the most effective point-of-use options are certified reverse osmosis systems or NSF/ANSI 53-certified carbon block filters — pitcher-style filters vary widely in lead reduction effectiveness, so check certification.
Akron’s water infrastructure is aging, as is true across much of the Midwest, and the city is navigating the challenge of maintaining compliance and improving quality while managing the costs of a large system. For residents, understanding what’s in the water and how to address concerns at home remains an important part of the picture.
If you are concerned about your water quality, a certified water treatment professional can test your water and advise on solutions.