Arkansas Tap Water Quality
Check a Arkansas ZIP Code
Overview
Arkansas draws most of its drinking water from lakes and reservoirs: Little Rock's Lake Maumelle watershed is actively protected, and Central Arkansas Water is regarded as one of the better-run utilities in the region. Beaver Lake serves the fast-growing northwest corridor around Fayetteville and Bentonville.
Compliance in the large systems is strong. The challenges sit with the hundreds of small rural systems, where disinfection byproducts and aging distribution lines generate most violations, and with private wells in the Ouachitas and Delta that go untested.
Common Contaminants in Arkansas
The most common exceedance in small surface-water systems, especially in warm months when organic matter is high
Common in Delta groundwater; aesthetic at typical levels
Pre-1986 housing in Little Rock and older Delta towns can contribute lead from service lines and fixtures
Violations & Compliance
Central Arkansas Water and the other metro systems rarely record health-based violations. Small systems account for nearly all exceedances, most often trihalomethanes, and consolidation of struggling systems into regional utilities has been the state's main fix.
City Reports for Arkansas
We haven't published individual city water reports for Arkansas yet. Use the ZIP lookup for a statewide assessment, and check your utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report for local detail.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources & References
The safety rating and guidance on this page draw on the following sources. See our full methodology.
- •US EPA Safe Drinking Water Act regulations
- •EWG Tap Water Database
- •The utility's most recent Consumer Confidence Report (CCR)
- •WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality