Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)
EPA MCLG
0 pCi/L
EPA's health goal is zero — no known safe level of exposure. This is a goal, not an enforceable limit.
Health Effects
Increased risk of cancer
Source: EPA — National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (retrieved 2026-09-20)
Common Sources
- Erosion of natural deposits of certain minerals that are radioactive and may emit a form of radiation known as alpha radiation
Is your Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) result safe? Get a free reading
The EPA MCLG for Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) is 0 pCi/L. Upload your water test (PDF or a photo) and we'll email a plain-English reading of where your result lands — and every other number — free. Educational only, no medical claims.
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Upload my testHow to Remove Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)
How do I get rid of Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) in drinking water?
For Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium), the verified treatment is reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis is a primary treatment. Gross alpha is a screening measure for alpha-emitting radionuclides, including radium-226 and excluding radon and uranium. Where a utility also reports radium separately, the radium answer applies too.
Source: EPA 40 CFR 141.66(g) BAT — gross alpha particle activity (MCL 15 pCi/L)
What filter certification covers Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)?
Reverse osmosis is certified under NSF/ANSI 58. Check that the certification listing names Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) or its group: a certification to a standard is not a certification for every contaminant in it.
Source: EPA 40 CFR 141.66(g) BAT — gross alpha particle activity (MCL 15 pCi/L)
Does a basic water filter pitcher remove Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)?
No. For Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium), the verified treatment is reverse osmosis — and a basic pitcher is an activated-carbon device, which is not on that list. No pitcher in our index carries a certification for Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium), so the jug in the fridge is not the answer here.
Source: EPA 40 CFR 141.66(g) BAT — gross alpha particle activity (MCL 15 pCi/L)
Does boiling water remove Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)?
No — boiling makes it worse. What Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) measures is non-volatile and dissolved: the water leaves as steam and the radionuclides stay behind, so boiling concentrates them in what remains instead of removing them. For Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium), the verified treatment is reverse osmosis; no thermal method appears in the corpus at all.
Source: EPA 40 CFR 141.66 BAT for radionuclides (reverse osmosis, ion exchange, anion exchange — no thermal method), plus the physical basis that these are non-volatile dissolved solids
We name no filter for Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium). The certifiers' listings carry no reviewed claim under this name, so no product can be shown to have been tested against it — and a claim we cannot check is a claim we will not publish. Use the certification above and read the listing for Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) itself.
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Is Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) in your water?
Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) has been recorded above its health guideline in 1,395 cities, serving 32.7M people. Each system below was judged against a goal of 0 pCi/L.
Most affected systems, by population served
- Chicago, IL2,746,388 people served3.1 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Houston, TX2,202,531 people served4 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Phoenix, AZ1,695,000 people served0.997 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Homestead Meadows North, TX747,168 people served2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Homestead Meadows South, TX747,168 people served2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Canutillo, TX747,168 people served2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Westway, TX747,168 people served2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- El Paso, TX747,168 people served2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Tucson, AZ732,906 people served1.2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
- Tampa, FL717,000 people served2.2 pCi/Lgoal 0 pCi/L
and 1,385 more cities with a recorded result above the guideline
These are the largest systems that reported a result above the guideline — not the highest results. A city missing from this list has not been shown to be clean: it may have no Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) result on file at all. We publish a level only where a system reported one.
Check your city or ZIP code for Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium)
Part of a group: radiological contaminants
This contaminant is rarely measured on its own. Radiological contaminants in drinking water covers the whole group — what they are, which limits are enforceable, and where they come from.
Others in this group
About the EPA MCLG
The EPA MCLG is the level of a contaminant in drinking water below which there is no known or expected risk to health. It is a non-enforceable public health goal, and is often stricter than the legal limit (MCL) water systems must meet.
Contaminant Type
Gross Alpha (Excl. Radon and Uranium) is classified as a Radionuclides contaminant.
Related Radionuclides Contaminants
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