What the federal record says about Fort Smith Water Utilities and the systems around it — violations in the last three years, whether any were health-based, lead and copper, and when the state last inspected.
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From Town Tools. For the current version, visit https://www.towntools.org/fort-smith-arkansas-us/water-record
Fort Smith pays more for water and sewer every year, and the city's own engineers said in February 2026 that the system often runs in crisis mode. That makes a fair question hard to answer: has the water itself actually been in violation of anything?
This page reads the federal record and says. It comes straight from EPA's compliance database for Fort Smith Water Utilities and the smaller systems around it — how many people each serves, whether any drinking-water rule has been broken in the last three years, whether any of those were health-based, whether lead or copper went over the action level, and when the state last inspected the plant.
On the record
No drinking-water violations on record for Fort Smith Water Utilities in the last three years.
That means no rule violation was reported to EPA — not that nothing can go wrong with the water today.
The city system. It treats surface water at the Lake Fort Smith and Lee Creek plants and serves most of the city, plus wholesale water to several smaller systems around it.
86,209
People served
as reported to the state
0
Quarters with a violation
out of the last 13
0
Rules violated
distinct rules, last three years
February 12, 2026
Last state inspection
the sanitary survey
FORT SMITH WATER UTILITIES — Water source: surface water. Read from EPA .
This is a regulatory ledger, not a reading of what is in your tap right now. Three things worth knowing about it. It lags: your state health department reports violations to EPA quarterly, so a problem from last month may not show here for a while. It is narrow: boil-water notices, pressure loss, discoloured water, taste and smell, and a main break on your street are not violations, and none of them appear here. And it is about drinking water only — the sewer overflows behind the 2015 consent decree and the rising bills are a different federal program and are not counted on this page. For what is happening today, call the utility below, and see what neighbours are reporting on Water Watch.
Other water systems nearby
Not everyone in the area is on the same system. If your bill comes from one of these, this is its record:
System
People served
Last three years
Barling WaterworksBarling, across the eastern edge of the city. Buys treated water rather than treating its own.
5,822
No violations on record
James Fork Regional Water DistrictServes rural southern Sebastian County.
11,538
No violations on record
Greenwood WaterworksGreenwood, south-east of the city.
9,905
No violations on record
Central City Water DepartmentCentral City, east of Fort Smith.
1,227
No violations on record
Milltown-Washburn Water UsersA rural water association south of the city.
4,325
Violations in 5 of the last 13 quarters
Riversouth Rural Water DistrictServes rural parts of the county south of the river.
4,275
No violations on record
How this record works
Your state health department, not EPA, does the day-to-day oversight; it reports violations to EPA each quarter. A problem from last month may not appear here for some time.
A violation is a breach of a federal rule. Most are about missing or late testing and reporting; the health-based ones, where a limit was actually exceeded, are called out separately above.
The sanitary survey is the state’s on-site inspection of the plant, wells, storage and distribution. Community systems are normally surveyed every three years, some ground-water systems every five.
If something is wrong with your water today
City of Fort Smith Utility Department
Customer service, Mon–Fri. For a leak, a main break or no water at all, the 24-hour line is 479-784-2342. 3900 Kelley Hwy, Fort Smith.
This page says whether a rule was broken. The utility’s annual water-quality report says what its tests actually found — that is the document to read for the numbers.
Fort Smith's annual Consumer Confidence Water ReportThe city's own yearly test results — what was actually found in the water and at what level. Reports back to 2006 are here; the 2025 report is at the top. (The older fortsmithwater.org copy of this list stops at 2019 — use the city page.)
About the water here
Where Fort Smith's water comes from
Two treatment plants on two surface sources outside the city: Lake Fort Smith, up near Mountainburg, and Lee Creek. That is why the federal record lists Fort Smith as a "surface water" system rather than a well system — surface water needs full treatment, and a drought or a big runoff event lands on the plant rather than on an aquifer.
Violations and the consent decree are two different things
The 2015 EPA/DOJ/ADEQ consent decree that is pushing your bill up every January is about sanitary sewer overflows — wastewater leaving the collection system — under the Clean Water Act. Drinking-water rules are the Safe Drinking Water Act, a separate program with a separate record, and that is what this page shows. A clean drinking-water record and an expensive sewer decree can both be true at once, and here they are.
If you rent, or your bill comes from somewhere else
The system that serves you is the one whose name is on your water bill, not the town line on your address. Several systems in the table above sit right against the city, and a few streets on the edges of Fort Smith are served by a neighbour's system. If you are unsure, the number on the bill is the fastest way to find out.
Data: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO), Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS). A work of the U.S. Government.
No violations on record
Fort Smith Water Utilities — EPA’s drinking-water record, last three years