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Federal water data

County water report

Natchitoches Parish Water Report

Drinking-water compliance, watershed health, monitoring records, and river conditions for Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana.

Water grade

F

Water score

5.6

State rank

#50

of 63

Health violations

291

EPA SDWIS, 5-year lookback

Watershed impaired

86.1%

79 water bodies assessed

Monitoring sites

9

1,775 recent measurements

Live streamflow

No gauge

Saline Byu nr Clarence, LA

Water at a glance

Key Water Indicators for Natchitoches Parish

EPA SDWIS

Safety Grade

F

Score: 5.6 / 100

EPA SDWIS

Active Violations

291

5-year health-based lookback

EPA ATTAINS

Watershed Health

86% impaired

79 bodies assessed

USGS NWIS

Streamflow Snapshot

No gauge

Saline Byu nr Clarence, LA

EPA WQP

Monitoring Sites

9

1,775 recent readings

Source: EPA SDWIS · Safe Drinking Water Information System

Drinking Water Compliance

Compliance grade

F

Based on EPA SDWIS compliance history.

Water score

Higher scores indicate cleaner recent compliance records.

5.6/100

Health violations

291

Health-based violations

Violations per 100K served

652.2

Population-normalized SDWIS rate

Editorial analysis

Understanding Natchitoches Parish’s Water

Drinking Water Quality Overview

EPA SDWIS

Natchitoches Parish's water systems carry a failing grade, scoring 5.6 out of 100. Over the past five years, EPA SDWIS records 291 health-based violations — a pattern that public water utilities are required to disclose and correct.

Watershed Conditions

EPA ATTAINS

Under the Clean Water Act §303(d), EPA ATTAINS tracks whether waterways meet quality standards for drinking, recreation, and aquatic life (reporting cycle: 2022). A large majority — 86.1% — of assessed waterways are impaired (68 of 79 water bodies) across Natchitoches Parish's watersheds. The leading impairment causes are dissolved oxygen and fecal coliform. Impairment does not mean tap water is unsafe — it measures ambient waterway conditions upstream of treatment, not finished drinking water.

Monitoring Network

EPA WQP

EPA's Water Quality Portal (WQP) aggregates monitoring data from federal, state, and tribal agencies. Natchitoches Parish has limited coverage with 9 active monitoring sites with 1,775 recent measurements on record. Predominant monitoring categories include physical and organics, other. More monitoring sites generally indicate greater scientific attention to local water conditions — and provide the baseline data that regulators use to set future impairment listings.

Editorial advisory

What the data suggests for Natchitoches Parish

Water Verdict

Natchitoches Parish receives a poor water quality assessment with a grade of F and a score of 5.6 out of 100. The water supply has documented quality issues. Residents are strongly encouraged to use filtered or bottled water for drinking and to stay informed about utility improvement plans.

Violation Context

Natchitoches Parish has recorded 291 health-based violations, indicating multiple instances where federal contaminant limits or treatment requirements were not met. At 652.2 violations per 100,000 people served, this rate is high and signals significant water quality management issues.

Consumer Guidance

Natchitoches Parish has a Grade F compliance record with 291 health-based violations — among the highest levels in the country. Natchitoches Parish's drinking-water compliance score is 5.6 out of 100. Residents are strongly advised to use a certified NSF 58 reverse-osmosis filter or bottled water for all drinking and cooking until violations are corrected. Contacting the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality or Health can expedite utility compliance action. Dissolved Oxygen is the leading impairment cause in Natchitoches Parish's watershed. There are 9 active water-quality monitoring sites in Natchitoches Parish. A pipeline streamflow snapshot from the Saline Byu gauge is also available on this page.

Regional Context

Natchitoches Parish has poorer water quality than the average county in Louisiana. Its water score is 24.5 points lower than the state average, suggesting more challenges with contamination control or infrastructure than neighboring counties.

Advisory text summarizes county-level public records and is not a replacement for your utility's current Consumer Confidence Report or direct local notices.

Contaminants & Resources

Key issues flagged in Natchitoches Parish's water environment

Watershed Impairment Causes (EPA ATTAINS)

  • 1

    Low dissolved oxygen

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 2

    Fecal coliform bacteria

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

  • 3

    High turbidity

    Impairment cause per EPA Clean Water Act §303(d) assessment

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Official EPA Resources for Natchitoches Parish

EPA How's My Waterway

Interactive watershed health data for Natchitoches Parish

EPA ECHO: Drinking Water Systems

Search water utilities and violation records for Natchitoches Parish

Consumer Confidence Reports (LA)

Annual water quality reports from utilities in Louisiana

Clean Water Act §303(d)

Watershed Health

Impaired Water Bodies

86.1%

68 of 79 assessed

High concern

Top Impairment Causes

  • 1

    DISSOLVED OXYGEN

  • 2

    FECAL COLIFORM

  • 3

    TURBIDITY

Source: EPA ATTAINS · Reporting cycle 2022

Impairment is determined under the Clean Water Act §303(d): a water body is impaired when it fails to meet state-defined quality standards for designated uses (drinking, recreation, aquatic life). Assessment coverage varies by state; counties without assessed water bodies are not shown.

Past 5 years

Water Quality Monitoring

Monitoring Sites

9

Active in the past 5 years

Measurements Recorded

1.8K

1,775 total readings

Most Measured

  • Physical
  • Organics, Other
  • Nutrient

Categories measured most frequently

Data from the EPA Water Quality Portal (WQP), aggregating monitoring records from federal, state, and tribal sources. Each measurement represents a single sample analyzed for a specific characteristic (e.g., E. coli, pH, dissolved oxygen, nitrogen).

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Water Cost Estimate

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Annual Total

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Monthly

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Water Bill

$558/yr

Filter Cost

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Safety Grade for Natchitoches Parish:F — Failing

High violation count or severe watershed conditions.

Estimates use the national average residential water rate ($0.0068/gal, EPA/AWWA 2023) and EPA WaterSense per-person consumption baseline (75 gal/person/day). Actual bills vary by utility, usage tier, and local infrastructure fees. For informational purposes only.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the water quality in Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana?
Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana has a drinking-water quality grade of F with a score of 5.6/100, based on EPA SDWIS compliance data. The county has 291 health-based drinking water violations over the past 5 years. Watershed health, monitoring records, and streamflow snapshots are reported separately on this page.
Are there any water violations in Natchitoches Parish?
Natchitoches Parish has 291 health-based drinking water violations recorded by the EPA over the past 5 years. Health-based violations indicate instances where contaminant levels exceeded EPA Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs). Violations may have been resolved — check with your local water utility for current status.
How healthy are the watersheds in Natchitoches Parish?
EPA ATTAINS assessments under Clean Water Act §303(d) indicate 86.1% of Natchitoches Parish's 79 assessed water bodies are classified as impaired (68 impaired). The top reported causes are DISSOLVED OXYGEN, FECAL COLIFORM, TURBIDITY. Impairment means the water body fails to meet state quality standards for at least one designated use — drinking water source, recreation, aquatic life, or fish consumption. Note: watershed impairment doesn't always translate to tap-water issues; treatment plants can remove most regulated contaminants.
How much water-quality monitoring happens in Natchitoches Parish?
EPA's Water Quality Portal records 1,775 measurements from 9 monitoring sites in Natchitoches Parish over the past five years. The most frequently measured characteristic groups are Physical, Organics, Other, Nutrient. Each measurement is a single sample analyzed for one characteristic (E. coli, pH, dissolved oxygen, etc.). High monitoring density means more scientific evidence behind any reported signal — it does not by itself indicate water quality.
How does Natchitoches Parish water compare to the Louisiana average?
Natchitoches Parish's SDWIS water quality score of 5.6/100 is lower than the Louisiana state average of 30.1. The average water quality grade across Louisiana is F, based on data from 63 counties with available SDWIS data.
Is tap water safe to drink in Natchitoches Parish?
Based on EPA SDWIS data, Natchitoches Parish has a water quality grade of F (5.6/100). This indicates below-average compliance with significant violations. Residents may want to consider home water filtration or independent testing. The grade speaks to the public water system, not the watershed — for watershed-level concerns, see the Watershed Health zone. For the most up-to-date information, contact your local water utility or review your Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).
Why does Natchitoches Parish have so many water violations?
Natchitoches Parish has 291 health-based drinking water violations on record from the EPA SDWIS database. A higher violation count can result from aging infrastructure, underfunded water utilities, agricultural runoff contamination, or industrial pollution. Counties with more water systems may also see more violations simply due to scale. Residents concerned about water quality should consider independent water testing and home filtration systems.
How does Natchitoches Parish rank for water quality in Louisiana?
Natchitoches Parish ranks #50 out of 63 counties in Louisiana by SDWIS water quality score (1 = best). With a score of 5.6/100, it falls in the bottom third of counties statewide. The ranking reflects EPA SDWIS compliance only — not watershed impairment, monitoring density, or streamflow, which are tracked separately on this page.

Counties with Similar Water Quality

De Soto Parish

Louisiana

F

5.2

Water score

Grant Parish

Louisiana

F

5.0

Water score

East Carroll Parish

Louisiana

F

4.9

Water score

Data Sources

Drinking-water compliance data from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) via the ECHO enforcement database. Scores reflect compliance history and health-based violation counts.

Watershed health and impaired-waterway data from the EPA ATTAINS Clean Water Act §303(d) assessments, state-reported and EPA-finalized.

Water-quality monitoring counts from the EPA Water Quality Portal (WQP), federated USGS, EPA, and state agency sampling records over a rolling 5-year window.

Disclaimer: This data is informational only. It is not health, legal, or professional advice. For concerns about your specific water supply, contact your local water utility.

By Evan Brooks, Data EditorUpdated Reviewed by Evan Brooks, Data Editor

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