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WaterQualityLens

Metal

CU90

Copper

Short-term gastrointestinal distress; long-term liver or kidney damage above the action level.

Maximum contaminant level
1.3 mg/L
Legal MCL
Enforceable federal limit
Health goal
1.3 mg/L
Health goal (MCLG)
No known health risk
Category
Metal
Category
Reporting unit
mg/L
Reporting unit

Regulatory basis

How Copper is regulated

What the enforceable limit actually obliges a utility to do, and how it differs from the health-based goal it is measured against.

For Copper the enforceable limit and the health goal are the same number, 1.3 mg/L. EPA set the Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) at the health goal (MCLG), so there is no feasibility gap here: meeting the legal limit also means meeting the health-based goal. A value above 1.3 mg/L is both an exceedance of the goal and a violation of the enforceable standard.

Results are reported in mg/L. A laboratory result and the limits above are only comparable when both are expressed in that same unit — a value in a different unit will be off by orders of magnitude. WaterQualityLens groups Copper under Metal for navigation; the grouping is ours, the limits are the regulator’s.

The record for Copper

Enforceable limit (MCL)
1.3 mg/L
Health goal (MCLG)
1.3 mg/L
Reporting unit
mg/L
Category
Metal
Contaminant code
CU90

Limits as published by EPA and state primacy agencies. This page reports regulatory and certification records; it does not assess anyone’s exposure and makes no health prediction.

Certification scope

Which certifications actually remove Copper

Only NSF/ANSI 53, 58 and 401 are health-contaminant standards. A product certified only to Standard 42 (aesthetics) or 372 (lead-free materials) has not been verified to reduce Copper, however the box is worded.

  • NSF/ANSI 53

    Counts — health standard

    Health effects: lead, VOCs, cysts, chromium, and (post-P473) PFAS reduction.

    1 filter in our registry holds an independently verified NSF/ANSI 53 claim for Copper, listed below.

  • NSF/ANSI 58

    Counts — health standard

    Reverse osmosis: dissolved inorganics, arsenic, hexavalent chromium, and total PFAS.

    No filter in our registry holds a verified NSF/ANSI 58 claim for Copper. That means we hold no certification record — not that the standard could never cover it.

  • NSF/ANSI 401

    Counts — health standard

    Emerging/incidental compounds: pharmaceuticals and select trace contaminants.

    No filter in our registry holds a verified NSF/ANSI 401 claim for Copper. That means we hold no certification record — not that the standard could never cover it.

  • NSF/ANSI 42

    Does not count — not a health standard

    Aesthetic effects: chlorine, taste, odor, particulates. No health-contaminant protection.

    No registry product lists Copper under NSF/ANSI 42. It would not count as verification of Copper reduction in any case.

  • NSF/ANSI 372

    Does not count — not a health standard

    Lead-free materials (manufacturing content only). Not a water-treatment claim.

    No registry product lists Copper under NSF/ANSI 372. It would not count as verification of Copper reduction in any case.

Counts are of active products in the WaterQualityLens filter registry holding a verified claim for contaminant code CU90 under that standard, as recorded by the certifying body (NSF, WQA, or IAPMO). Certification is granted per contaminant, not per product: a filter certified to Standard 53 for one contaminant is not thereby certified for Copper.

Entity graph

Systems reporting Copper

Water systems in our coverage whose most recent published sample set includes Copper. Each value carries its sample date and the agency that reported it.

Certified reduction · commercial placements

Filters verified to reduce Copper

These filters hold an independent NSF/ANSI health certification (Standard 53, 58, or 401) specifically for Copper. Certification against a health standard means an accredited lab verified the filter reduces this contaminant — a materials-only claim such as NSF 42 or 372 does not.

  • Brita

    Elite Pitcher (OB06)

    Verified Partner
    BR-OB06Pitcher$39.99
    NSF/ANSI 53

    Certified by NSF

    View at retailer

Hardware links are affiliate placements marked “Verified Partner.” Products appear here solely because they hold an independently verified NSF/ANSI health certification for Copper; commercial arrangements never affect this list.