Lee Creek WTP History

Lee Creek Water Treatment Plant (WTP) is one of two water treatment facilities owned and operated by the City of Fort Smith and serves as the secondary source of drinking water for Fort Smith customers. The Lee Creek WTP is located in Crawford County and utilizes the Lee Creek Watershed as its water source. Water is stored in Lee Creek Reservoir. This plant also has the capability of pulling water from the Arkansas River, which it has done on one occasion.

Lee Creek WTP was built in the early 1990s and was dedicated to service in 1991. This water treatment plant can produce 23.3 million gallons of water per day (MGD) when needed but averages around 10 MGD. The plant is also equipped with a hydro generator that can produce up to 1500 kW of electricity. Water is treated through a sequence of processes, including coagulation and flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, chlorine disinfection, and fluoridation.

• Dedicated Employees: 11
• Watershed: Lee Creek
• Source Water: Lee Creek Reservoir
• Average Daily Flow: 9.26 MGD (2023)
• Max Daily Flow: 16.52 MGD (2023)
• Permitted Design Flow: 23.5 MGD