Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate in drinking water
1,235 active public water systems in 39 states had a Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate violation in the past three years, and 64 have one that is still unresolved.
You are on Tapcensus, an independent guide to the EPA compliance records of every public water system in the United States. This page explains Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate and lists the water systems whose records include a related violation. It does not show measured levels.
Is Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate in the records for your water system?
Enter a ZIP code, town, or street address to see the water systems that serve your area, their status, and which rules and contaminants appear in their violations.
Enter a ZIP code, town, or street address.
What it is and where it comes from
Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate (DEHA) is a synthetic plasticizer used to make PVC and other plastics flexible. It enters drinking water through discharge from chemical factories and leaching from PVC plastic materials including some water distribution components. It is one of the less commonly detected regulated organic contaminants in US public water systems.
Health effects
Chronic exposure to DEHA is associated with reproductive effects and decreased body weight in animal studies. EPA classifies it as a possible human carcinogen (Group C). Long-term exposure above the MCL is the primary concern; the general population is at risk, with potential for greater sensitivity in developing fetuses and reproductive-age adults.
The standard and what a violation means
EPA limit: 0.4 mg/L (400 ppb).
Water systems with a Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate violation, by state
Active public water systems that reported at least one related violation to EPA in the past three years. Each state links to the list of its affected systems.
| State | Systems with violations, 3 yr | Share of active systems | Unresolved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 202 | 3% | 8 |
| New York | 120 | 1% | 1 |
| Texas | 115 | 2% | 0 |
| Oklahoma | 95 | 7% | 0 |
| Oregon | 84 | 3% | 3 |
| Illinois | 64 | 1% | 12 |
| Washington | 44 | 1% | 8 |
| Colorado | 39 | 2% | 4 |
| Montana | 37 | 2% | 1 |
| Idaho | 36 | 2% | 3 |
| Connecticut | 34 | 1% | 1 |
| West Virginia | 32 | 4% | 4 |
| Indiana | 30 | 1% | 2 |
| Utah | 29 | 3% | 1 |
| Michigan | 28 | 0% | 1 |
| Alaska | 25 | 2% | 0 |
| Alabama | 25 | 4% | 0 |
| California | 25 | 0% | 1 |
| Wyoming | 24 | 3% | 1 |
| Vermont | 22 | 2% | 3 |
| Arizona | 16 | 1% | 1 |
| Iowa | 16 | 1% | 0 |
| Nevada | 16 | 3% | 0 |
| Massachusetts | 12 | 1% | 1 |
| Maine | 11 | 1% | 0 |
| North Carolina | 11 | 0% | 1 |
| Rhode Island | 9 | 2% | 0 |
| Minnesota | 8 | 0% | 2 |
| New Jersey | 8 | 0% | 4 |
| Wisconsin | 4 | 0% | 0 |
| Maryland | 3 | 0% | 1 |
| South Dakota | 3 | 0% | 0 |
| North Dakota | 2 | 1% | 0 |
| Kentucky | 1 | 0% | 0 |
| Nebraska | 1 | 0% | 0 |
| New Hampshire | 1 | 0% | 0 |
| New Mexico | 1 | 0% | 0 |
| Ohio | 1 | 0% | 0 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0% | 0 |
Largest water systems with a Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate violation
The ten biggest systems, by people served, whose records include a related violation in the past three years.
| System | Serves | Status | Rules violated, 3 yr | Unresolved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Denver Water Board Denver County |
1,287,000 | 3 | 0 | |
|
Gilbert, Town of Gilbert · Maricopa County |
247,600 | 9 | 1 | |
|
Corona, City of Corona · Riverside County |
169,380 | 6 | 0 | |
|
City of Sunnyvale Sunnyvale · Santa Clara County |
157,566 | 5 | 0 | |
|
Naperville Naperville · DuPage County |
156,406 | 1 | 0 | |
|
Epcor Agua Fria Surprise · Maricopa County |
128,040 | 5 | 0 | |
|
Pasco Water Department Franklin County |
115,102 | 2 | 0 | |
|
Inima USA / Aquaria LLC Dighton · Bristol County |
105,643 | 1 | 0 | |
|
Lehi City Utah County |
93,446 | 2 | 0 | |
|
GW Santa Cruz Water CO Maricopa · Pinal County |
84,000 | 7 | 0 |
About this data
A system is counted once if any of its violations in the past three years involved Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate, including monitoring and reporting lapses. Rules violated and status in the systems table are for the whole system, not Di(2-ethylhexyl) Adipate alone. Counts cover active systems in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Source: the U.S. EPA's Enforcement and Compliance History Online system (ECHO), which publishes the federal Safe Drinking Water Information System. EPA's terms and values are shown as published. The records are from EPA's data refresh of Oct 7, 2026; EPA refreshes this data quarterly, and states report to EPA with a lag of three to six months, so the newest violations may not appear yet.