Rome Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Rome, New York, in Oneida County — a major central New York city (Rome is a significant Oneida County city — historically one of the most important cities in central New York for manufacturing and military history; Fort Stanwix (now a National Monument in downtown Rome) was a crucial American Revolutionary War fortification that withstood a British siege in 1777, a key event in the Saratoga Campaign), home of Griffiss Business and Technology Park (built on the former Griffiss Air Force Base — the former Strategic Air Command base that once housed major Cold War B-52 bombers; now a significant technology and aerospace business park), a diverse Oneida County community with a primarily working-class heritage, and a city in the Utica–Rome metropolitan area — draws its municipal water supply from the Black River watershed via the City of Rome Water Division. Water hardness in Rome measures 67.5 mg/L — classified as moderately soft.

Rome's moderate softness reflects the Black River watershed's calcareous-poor Adirondack geology. The Black River watershed at Rome–Oneida County drains: the Precambrian Adirondack Mountains granite and gneiss (calcareous-poor crystalline basement); and the Ordovician Trenton Group (calcareous-poor to moderate black shale). City of Rome treatment produces the moderate 67.5 mg/L.

With hardness at 67.5 mg/L, Rome residents enjoy moderately soft water. City of Rome Water Division consistently delivers water meeting all New York State DEC and EPA Safe Drinking Water Act requirements.