Water Utility
The City of Shorewood has approximately 25 miles of watermain providing distribution throughout the city to 1,473 connections and 435 hydrants. Shorewood Public Works Department operates and maintains the city's seven water wells, two storage reservoirs, the water distribution system, and the sanitary sewer collection system. Staff is also responsible for the water meter reading and repair program.
Shorewood Municipal Water water comes from the following groundwater sources: Shorewood purchases water from Chanhassen and the system has six wells ranging from 326 to 640 feet deep that draw water from the Prairie Du Chien-Jordan, Prairie Du Chien Group, and Tunnel City-Wonewoc aquifers.
Shorewood works hard to provide you with safe and reliable drinking water that meets federal and state water quality requirements. The purpose of this report is to provide you with information on your drinking water and how to protect our precious water resources.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets safe drinking water standards. These standards limit the amounts of specific contaminants allowed in drinking water. This ensures that tap water is safe to drink for most people. Drinking water, including bottled water, may reasonably be expected to contain at least small amounts of some contaminants. The presence of contaminants does not necessarily indicate that water poses a health risk. More information about contaminants and potential health effects can be obtained by calling the Environmental Protection Agency's Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 800-426-4791.
If you have a private well visit this page.
- Maintenance: Residents with fire hydrants on their property must maintain a 3-foot diameter around the fire hydrant. This includes any landscaping. Many hydrants have bushes or large rocks around them to help them blend into the landscape. This is a hazard in case of fire and makes it difficult for hydrant maintenance. Please remove this landscaping around hydrants.
- Flushing: City water mains are flushed semi-annually in the spring and the fall. Flushing is done to remove mineral deposits that have accumulated in the water pipes. Upon request, some areas are flushed more frequently to maintain fresh, clear water. Call us at 952-960-7900 with any questions.
Households may experience rusty water, discoloration, or other problems during flushing. City crews take precautions to limit problems; however, if you do experience rusty water, running the cold-water tap will clean out your system. Call the Utility Division at 952-960-7900 if you have a problem related to flushing that does not clear up within 48 hours.
Annual Water Reports are published to make consumers aware of the quality of the drinking water in their homes. If your home has well water, you are responsible for your own water testing. If you have questions about the reports contact the city at 952-960-7900.
Shorewood Monitoring Results
These reports contain our monitoring results from January 1 to December 31, 2024. Other city's 2024 reports will be updated when they become available.
- 2024 Shorewood Water Quality Report (PDF)
- 2024 Chanhassen Water Quality Report (PDF)
- 2024 Excelsior Water Quality Report (PDF)
- 2024 Minnetonka Water Quality Report (PDF)
We work with the Minnesota Department of Health to test drinking water for more than 100 contaminants. It is not unusual to detect contaminants in small amounts. No water supply is ever completely free of contaminants. Drinking water standards protect Minnesotans from substances that may be harmful to their health.
Learn more by visiting the Minnesota Department of Health's webpage Basics of Monitoring and Testing of Drinking Water in Minnesota.
EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline: 800-426-4791
Discolored Water
Brown or yellow water is not visually appealing, but is rarely a concern. Generally it is caused from iron deposits released from water pipes. If your water is discolored, run the cold water at a faucet closest to the water meter or on the lowest level of your home. If after five minutes the water is to clear, wait for an hour and try again. If water is still discolored, contact the city Public Works Department, 952-960-7900.
City Water & Hardness / Iron Levels
If your home has city water and you have a water softener, the softening level should be set at 22. Iron level for city water is 0.28 parts per million. Other water questions may be directed to Public Works at 952-960-7913.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of more than 5,000 human-made chemicals that do not break down over time. Their extreme resistance to degradation in the environment and resistance to destruction in wastewater treatment plants, landfills, and incinerators has led to the nickname "forever chemicals."
Since the 1940s, PFAS have been used in many commercial and industrial applications including metal plating, carpeting, waterproof clothing, upholstery, food paper wrappings, cookware, cosmetics, fire-fighting foam, and much more. PFAS continues to be manufactured and used in industrial and commercial products today.
According to the Minnesota Department of Health, many PFAS are known to be health hazards to humans and can also negatively impact aquatic life and wildlife. Many communities throughout the country are dealing with the impact of PFAS on their water supply systems.
In Minnesota, the PFAS Monitoring Project has sampled public water sources throughout the state and identified some amount of PFAS in many community wells. A sampling of Shorewood's Amesbury wells found a very low but detectable amount of a type of PFAS known as PFBA (PDF), which measured at 0.0067 parts per billion (ug/L). This amount is well below the MDH guidance of 7.0 ppb and does not exceed the PFAS Health Risk Index on MDH's online PFAS Dashboard. The source of the PFBA detected in Shorewood's wells is unknown. According to MDH, a person drinking water at or below this guidance level would have little to no risk of health effects.
The City of Shorewood has received notice of two nationwide, class action settlements of various claims against DuPont and 3M for the proliferation of PFAS in public water systems. Shorewood is an eligible claimant based on sampling results by MDH. At its meeting on November 27, 2023 (PDF), the City Council decided to participate in the class action settlements and retained the services of a local law firm on a contingency basis. The firm will help file claims in the settlements and potentially in future lawsuits or settlements with other defendants. In the months ahead, additional testing of all the City's wells will be completed and settlement claims filed.
The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) performs testing for lead levels and other impurities in the community water system on an annual basis. MDH ensures that community water supplies meet standards for lead and require treatment, if needed, to meet safe water drinking standards. Water testing for private wells is the homeowner's responsibility.
- 2024 Notification of Accessibility of the Service Line Materials Inventory (PDF)
- For additional resources regarding lead in water and drinking water protection, visit MDH's website
Shorewood’s Wellhead Protection Plan, required by the Minnesota Department of Health, is designed to safeguard the city’s drinking water supply by reducing the risk of contamination to our public water systems. The plan identifies areas that contribute water to the city’s wells, establishes a protection area, identify vulnerability and potential contaminant sources and identify strategies to protect drinking water sources. Through this proactive planning effort, Shorewood helps ensure a safe, reliable, and high-quality drinking water supply for current and future residents.