Camas Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Camas, Washington, in Clark County — a scenic Columbia River Gorge city on the Washington bank of the Columbia River adjacent to Washougal, known for the historic Georgia-Pacific paper mill (one of Washington's oldest industrial operations), the Lacamas Lake recreational area, and the high-tech corridor of the Portland-Vancouver metropolitan area — receives its municipal water from the City of Camas Water Division, which draws from Lacamas Lake — a reservoir on the Lacamas Creek watershed in the Clark County Cascade foothills — as Camas's primary surface water source.

The soft 61.5 mg/L hardness and TDS of 144.6 mg/L reflect the Lacamas Creek watershed's characteristically low-carbonate Columbia River Basalt terrain. The Lacamas Creek watershed drains the Cascade Range foothills of Clark County — underlain primarily by the Miocene Columbia River Basalt Group (the Grande Ronde Basalt and Wanapum Basalt flood basalt formations). These massive Miocene continental flood basalts are dense, crystalline volcanic rocks with very low carbonate mineral content and minimal solubility in the mild Pacific Northwest climate. The combination of basaltic parent rock and abundant Pacific precipitation (40+ inches/year) over the Lacamas Creek watershed produces characteristically soft, low-TDS surface water. Camas's supply is notably softer than the Cascade Range's purely volcanic terrains, reflecting the Lacamas Creek's managed reservoir character.

At 61.5 mg/L, Camas's water is soft — comfortable for all household uses. Scale forms very slowly over many months, soap lathers well, and the dishwasher produces clean results. Semi-annual descaling of heating appliances is adequate. The PFAS level of 2.8 ppt is excellent for the Portland-Vancouver metropolitan area — Camas's Lacamas Creek watershed is largely undeveloped forested land, and the Columbia River Gorge corridor's limited industrial PFAS sources produce a very low background for this Clark County city.