A new University of Texas at Austin study found several water samples collected from the Austin’s Colony neighborhood in far East Austin exceeded regulatory guidelines for lead, iron, manganese and other heavy metals. The study was peer-reviewed and published in the nonprofit science journal PLOS late last month.
The findings are among the first third-party, in-depth data available on the neighborhood’s water quality. For decades, residents in the area have been at odds with its water provider, a for-profit company called Texas Water Utilities, for providing an inadequate product at high rates. Before turning on the tap, Austin’s Colony residents pay a $59.39 base fee — seven times higher than Austin Water’s base fee.
UT researchers surveyed community members and collected 100 water samples from individual homes between April 2024 and October 2025 for the study. They also collected samples directly from the water sources Texas Water Utilities draws from, which include a groundwater aquifer and the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer.
David Bahamón-Pinzón, a UT research coordinator involved in the study, said researchers did not find any issues with water samples taken directly from the water sources, but samples taken from individual households after the water traveled through pipes and out the faucet told a different story.
Three samples that were clear in color and were not treated with an at-home filtration system exceeded the World Health Organization, Environmental Protection Agency or Texas Commission on Environmental Quality standards for lead, according to the study. Discolored water samples had even higher concentrations of lead, as well as other heavy metals, including iron, copper, and in some instances, arsenic, Bahamón-Pinzón said.
In a survey of 100 community members, 70% reported experiencing discolored water, and over half said the discoloration lasted hours or days. Nearly half of survey participants said discoloration occurred on a monthly basis.
Bahamón-Pinzón said the study’s findings suggest untreated, discolored water isn’t safe to drink.
“Lead is one of those metals that there is no known concentration that is not going to cause harm in the human body,” he said.
Community members also reported dealing with water hardness, which is not regulated by the EPA or TCEQ, but can damage appliances, cause chronic skin conditions and turn hair brittle.
Bahamón-Pinzón said samples taken from households with water softener or reverse osmosis systems by and large did not exceed any regulatory limits and also improved water hardness; however, these systems can be pricey — ranging around $500-$3,000 — and are not accessible to everyone in the community.
Austin’s Colony resident Bianca Guerrero said she hasn’t been able to afford an advanced water filtration system. She said she’s worried her family has used discolored water to shower, brush their teeth and cook for over a decade. In poor lighting, water discoloration isn’t always visible.
“I’ve been living here. I’ve been showering with this. I’ve been boiling pasta with this,” she said. “Now I need to budget money for a water softener and a reverse osmosis water system, and that’s really hard to do because I’m part time.”
Before the study results came out, Guerrero had been organizing community meetings to discuss the water quality with her neighbors. She called representatives from the city, county and the Public Utility Commission, which regulates utilities in Texas, but hasn’t seen meaningful change. She said she hopes the study will be a turning point.
“[Texas Water Utilities has] to provide continuous and adequate services, and they’re not, and I think this research helps show that,” she said.
