Cryptosporidium Monitoring Update: Detections From Routine Monitoring In The Bull Run. Customers Do Not Need To Take Any Additional Precautions At This Time. -03/28/25

Since 2017, the Portland Water Bureau has detected low levels of Cryptosporidium from routine monitoring of source water. The Portland Water Bureau received results from ongoing monitoring from the Bull Run Watershed intake for Cryptosporidium, a potentially disease-causing microorganism. In the 50 liters sampled each day from March 23 to March 26, two Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the sample collected on March 23, and one Cryptosporidium oocyst was detected in each of the samples collected on March 24 and March 26.  Cryptosporidium was not detected in the sample collected on March 25. Prior to these detections, Cryptosporidium was last detected from the Bull Run Watershed intake on March 11, 2025.

The Bull Run Watershed is Portland’s primary source of drinking water. The Portland Water Bureau does not currently treat for Cryptosporidium, but is required to do so under drinking water regulations. Portland is working to install filtration by September 30, 2027 under a compliance schedule with the Oregon Health Authority. In the meantime, Portland Water Bureau is implementing interim measures such as watershed protection and additional monitoring to protect public health. Consultation with public health officials has concluded that at this time, customers do not need to take any additional precautions.

Exposure to Cryptosporidium can cause cryptosporidiosis, a serious illness. Symptoms can include diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach pain. People with healthy immune systems recover without medical treatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people with severely weakened immune systems are at risk for more serious disease. Symptoms may be more severe and could lead to serious or life-threatening illness. Examples of people with weakened immune systems include those with AIDS, those with inherited diseases that affect the immune system, and cancer and transplant patients who are taking certain immunosuppressive drugs.

The Environmental Protection Agency advises that customers who are immunocompromised and receive their drinking water from the Bull Run Watershed consult with their healthcare professional about the safety of drinking the tap water. The Portland Water Bureau and Burlington, City of Gresham, City of Sandy, City of Tualatin, Green Valley, GNR, Hideaway Hills, Lake Grove, Lorna Domestic Water, Lusted, Palatine Hill, Pleasant Home, Raleigh, Rockwood, Skyview Acres, Tualatin Valley, Two Rivers, Valley View and West Slope Water Districts receive all or part of their drinking water supply from Bull Run. To learn if your drinking water comes from Bull Run, please contact your local drinking water provider.

The public and the media are encouraged to view all sampling results posted to the City’s website at portland.gov/water/cryptoresults. The bureau will notify the media and public immediately should further test results indicate a risk to public health and precautions are necessary.

Customers with questions regarding water quality can call the Water Quality Line at 503-823-7525.

About the Portland Water Bureau

The Portland Water Bureau serves water to almost a million people in the Portland area. Portland’s water system includes two great water sources, 53 tanks and reservoirs, and 2,200 miles of pipes. With 600 employees working on everything from water treatment to customer service, the Water Bureau is committed to serving excellent water every minute of every day.

“Tilt” Got You Thinking? It’s Never Too Soon To Prepare For A Water Emergency -03/27/25

An earthquake could challenge our water system; here’s how to stay prepared

It’s always a good time to prepare for a water emergency. As climate change drives up the intensity and regularity of wildfires—and with the ever-present threat of a large Cascadia earthquake—it's important to have a plan.

But preparedness isn’t just for big emergencies like wildfires or earthquakes. We need to be ready for anything that could temporarily interrupt water service. A common water emergency is a main break in the neighborhood. The most important thing you can do to prepare is to store a backup water supply of 14 gallons per person, which should last about two weeks if necessary. 

See below to learn how you can get and stay prepared and what the Portland Water Bureau is doing to prepare for emergencies.

What you can do

By preparing in advance for emergencies, you can help keep yourself, your household, and your community safe after emergencies—even if essential services like water are temporarily disrupted.  

Here’s how to get started:

• Start with water. People can survive for weeks without food, but only a few days without water.
  • You should store 14 gallons of water per person, and more for pets, pregnant people, newborns, and those with extra needs. Be sure to store your water in sanitized containers that you can access easily. 
  • Level up your preparedness by learning how to access water from your water heater and having a way to treat additional water.
• Once you’ve created an emergency water supply, you can expand your emergency kit by adding food and other supplies. Don’t forget to make a toilet plan too!
• Emergency response starts close to home. Sharing resources and knowledge will make your whole community more resilient.  Make connections with your neighbors now so you can work together to help those at greater risk after an emergency.
• Go a step further, and volunteer for a Neighborhood Emergency Team or to staff a neighborhood emergency communications station.

What we're doing

Emergency preparedness is one of our top priorities as an organization and we include it in all our work. We invest in our water system to keep our infrastructure healthy and resilient. When planning, we expect the unexpected. We make our long-term plans flexible and responsive so we can adapt to changing conditions and unforeseen events as they arise. For example, we know climate change is an ongoing issue, so we prepare for its impacts in all our work. 

By accounting for emergencies in our planning and by investing in our infrastructure, we maintain a resilient water system that can survive a variety of emergencies:  

• We proactively replace tens of thousands of feet of aging pipes with longer lasting ductile iron pipes each year to keep our system up to date.  
• The new 12.4-million-gallon Washington Park Reservoir was built with compressible materials, thick concrete walls, and 176 pilings to help it withstand future earthquakes.
• We plan for earthquakes by designing new facilities to modern seismic standards and by investing in projects like the Washington Park Reservoirs Improvement and the Willamette River Crossing.  
• We partner with the U.S Forest Service, Oregon Department of Forestry, and local fire districts to protect the Bull Run watershed from wildfires.
• We invest in our robust secondary water supply, the Columbia South Shore Groundwater Well Field, to increase our ability to withstand emergencies.  
• We also partner with the Regional Water Providers Consortium to practice response to emergency scenarios and build a strong peer network. We have worked proactively with regional partners for more than 27 years.

And it doesn’t stop there—all our infrastructure investments, system improvements, and adaptive plans work together to prepare our system for coping with emergencies of all kinds.

Watch how-to videos and read about how to start preparing for emergencies with water in:

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About the Portland Water Bureau

The Portland Water Bureau serves water to almost a million people in the Portland area. Portland’s water system includes two great water sources, 54 tanks and reservoirs, and 2,250 miles of pipes. With 600 employees working on everything from water treatment to customer service, the Water Bureau is committed to serving excellent water every minute of every day. 

Cryptosporidium Monitoring Update: Detections From Routine Monitoring In The Bull Run. Customers Do Not Need To Take Any Additional Precautions At This Time. -03/18/25

Since 2017, the Portland Water Bureau has detected low levels of Cryptosporidium from routine monitoring of source water. The Portland Water Bureau received results from ongoing monitoring from the Bull Run Watershed intake for Cryptosporidium, a potentially disease-causing microorganism. In the 50 liters sampled each day from March 9 to March 12, two Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the sample collected on March 9, three Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the sample collected on March 10 and one Cryptosporidium oocyst was detected in the sample collected on March 11. Cryptosporidium was not detected in the sample collected on March 12. Prior to these detections, Cryptosporidium was last detected from the Bull Run Watershed intake on March 3, 2025.

The Bull Run Watershed is Portland’s primary source of drinking water. The Portland Water Bureau does not currently treat for Cryptosporidium, but is required to do so under drinking water regulations. Portland is working to install filtration by September 30, 2027 under a compliance schedule with the Oregon Health Authority. In the meantime, Portland Water Bureau is implementing interim measures such as watershed protection and additional monitoring to protect public health. Consultation with public health officials has concluded that at this time, customers do not need to take any additional precautions.

Exposure to Cryptosporidium can cause cryptosporidiosis, a serious illness. Symptoms can include diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach pain. People with healthy immune systems recover without medical treatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people with severely weakened immune systems are at risk for more serious disease. Symptoms may be more severe and could lead to serious or life-threatening illness. Examples of people with weakened immune systems include those with AIDS, those with inherited diseases that affect the immune system, and cancer and transplant patients who are taking certain immunosuppressive drugs.

The Environmental Protection Agency advises that customers who are immunocompromised and receive their drinking water from the Bull Run Watershed consult with their healthcare professional about the safety of drinking the tap water. The Portland Water Bureau and Burlington, City of Gresham, City of Sandy, City of Tualatin, Green Valley, GNR, Hideaway Hills, Lake Grove, Lorna Domestic Water, Lusted, Palatine Hill, Pleasant Home, Raleigh, Rockwood, Skyview Acres, Tualatin Valley, Two Rivers, Valley View and West Slope Water Districts receive all or part of their drinking water supply from Bull Run. To learn if your drinking water comes from Bull Run, please contact your local drinking water provider.

The public and the media are encouraged to view all sampling results posted to the City’s website at portland.gov/water/cryptoresults. The bureau will notify the media and public immediately should further test results indicate a risk to public health and precautions are necessary.

Customers with questions regarding water quality can call the Water Quality Line at 503-823-7525.

About the Portland Water Bureau

The Portland Water Bureau serves water to almost a million people in the Portland area. Portland’s water system includes two great water sources, 53 tanks and reservoirs, and 2,200 miles of pipes. With 600 employees working on everything from water treatment to customer service, the Water Bureau is committed to serving excellent water every minute of every day.

Cryptosporidium Monitoring Update: Detections From Routine Monitoring In The Bull Run. Customers Do Not Need To Take Any Additional Precautions At This Time. -03/11/25

Since 2017, the Portland Water Bureau has detected low levels of Cryptosporidium from routine monitoring of source water. The Portland Water Bureau received results from ongoing monitoring from the Bull Run Watershed intake for Cryptosporidium, a potentially disease-causing microorganism. In the 50 liters sampled each day from March 2 to March 5, one Cryptosporidium oocyst was detected in the sample collected on March 2 and two Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the sample collected on March 3. Cryptosporidium was not detected in the samples collected on March 4 or March 5. Prior to these detections, Cryptosporidium was last detected from the Bull Run Watershed intake on February 26, 2025.

The Bull Run Watershed is Portland’s primary source of drinking water. The Portland Water Bureau does not currently treat for Cryptosporidium, but is required to do so under drinking water regulations. Portland is working to install filtration by September 30, 2027 under a compliance schedule with the Oregon Health Authority. In the meantime, Portland Water Bureau is implementing interim measures such as watershed protection and additional monitoring to protect public health. Consultation with public health officials has concluded that at this time, customers do not need to take any additional precautions.

Exposure to Cryptosporidium can cause cryptosporidiosis, a serious illness. Symptoms can include diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach pain. People with healthy immune systems recover without medical treatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people with severely weakened immune systems are at risk for more serious disease. Symptoms may be more severe and could lead to serious or life-threatening illness. Examples of people with weakened immune systems include those with AIDS, those with inherited diseases that affect the immune system, and cancer and transplant patients who are taking certain immunosuppressive drugs.

The Environmental Protection Agency advises that customers who are immunocompromised and receive their drinking water from the Bull Run Watershed consult with their healthcare professional about the safety of drinking the tap water. The Portland Water Bureau and Burlington, City of Gresham, City of Sandy, City of Tualatin, Green Valley, GNR, Hideaway Hills, Lake Grove, Lorna Domestic Water, Lusted, Palatine Hill, Pleasant Home, Raleigh, Rockwood, Skyview Acres, Tualatin Valley, Two Rivers, Valley View and West Slope Water Districts receive all or part of their drinking water supply from Bull Run. To learn if your drinking water comes from Bull Run, please contact your local drinking water provider.

The public and the media are encouraged to view all sampling results posted to the City’s website at portland.gov/water/cryptoresults. The bureau will notify the media and public immediately should further test results indicate a risk to public health and precautions are necessary.

Customers with questions regarding water quality can call the Water Quality Line at 503-823-7525.

About the Portland Water Bureau

The Portland Water Bureau serves water to almost a million people in the Portland area. Portland’s water system includes two great water sources, 53 tanks and reservoirs, and 2,200 miles of pipes. With 600 employees working on everything from water treatment to customer service, the Water Bureau is committed to serving excellent water every minute of every day.

Cryptosporidium Monitoring Update: Detections From Routine Monitoring In The Bull Run. Customers Do Not Need To Take Any Additional Precautions At This Time. -03/04/25

Since 2017, the Portland Water Bureau has detected low levels of Cryptosporidium from routine monitoring of source water. The Portland Water Bureau received results from ongoing monitoring from the Bull Run Watershed intake for Cryptosporidium, a potentially disease-causing microorganism. In the 50 liters sampled each day from February 23 to February 26, two Cryptosporidium oocysts were detected in the sample collected on February 25 and one Cryptosporidium oocyst was detected in the sample collected on February 26. Cryptosporidium was not detected in the samples collected on February 23 or February 24. Prior to these detections, Cryptosporidium was last detected from the Bull Run Watershed intake on February 19, 2025.

The Bull Run Watershed is Portland’s primary source of drinking water. The Portland Water Bureau does not currently treat for Cryptosporidium, but is required to do so under drinking water regulations. Portland is working to install filtration by September 30, 2027 under a compliance schedule with the Oregon Health Authority. In the meantime, Portland Water Bureau is implementing interim measures such as watershed protection and additional monitoring to protect public health. Consultation with public health officials has concluded that at this time, customers do not need to take any additional precautions.

Exposure to Cryptosporidium can cause cryptosporidiosis, a serious illness. Symptoms can include diarrhea, vomiting, fever and stomach pain. People with healthy immune systems recover without medical treatment. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people with severely weakened immune systems are at risk for more serious disease. Symptoms may be more severe and could lead to serious or life-threatening illness. Examples of people with weakened immune systems include those with AIDS, those with inherited diseases that affect the immune system, and cancer and transplant patients who are taking certain immunosuppressive drugs.

The Environmental Protection Agency advises that customers who are immunocompromised and receive their drinking water from the Bull Run Watershed consult with their healthcare professional about the safety of drinking the tap water. The Portland Water Bureau and Burlington, City of Gresham, City of Sandy, City of Tualatin, Green Valley, GNR, Hideaway Hills, Lake Grove, Lorna Domestic Water, Lusted, Palatine Hill, Pleasant Home, Raleigh, Rockwood, Skyview Acres, Tualatin Valley, Two Rivers, Valley View and West Slope Water Districts receive all or part of their drinking water supply from Bull Run. To learn if your drinking water comes from Bull Run, please contact your local drinking water provider.

The public and the media are encouraged to view all sampling results posted to the City’s website at portland.gov/water/cryptoresults. The bureau will notify the media and public immediately should further test results indicate a risk to public health and precautions are necessary.

Customers with questions regarding water quality can call the Water Quality Line at 503-823-7525.

About the Portland Water Bureau

The Portland Water Bureau serves water to almost a million people in the Portland area. Portland’s water system includes two great water sources, 53 tanks and reservoirs, and 2,200 miles of pipes. With 600 employees working on everything from water treatment to customer service, the Water Bureau is committed to serving excellent water every minute of every day.