Is Fort Worth, TX tap water safe?
Supplied by City of Fort Worth · serves 955,900 people (653,251 connections) · Surface water · EPA ID TX2200012
Data: U.S. EPA · How we read the data · How we check it
Most of Fort Worth gets its water from City of Fort Worth. Parts of the city are served by a smaller system: Naval Air Stn Joint Reserve Base Water System (9,000 people). Your water bill names your system.
Summary
PFAS above the 2024 federal limits. Systems have until 2029 to meet the PFAS limits.
Is it an emergency? No: PFAS limits are about years of exposure, not a glass of water, and nothing in EPA's data calls for you to stop drinking the water today. If your utility ever issues a boil-water or do-not-drink notice, follow it.
- PFAS
- Above limitPFOA, PFOS, PFHxS, the PFAS Hazard Index above the federal limit in EPA's 2023–2025 testing (PFOA 5.9 ppt vs a limit of 4 ppt, PFOS 6.17 ppt vs a limit of 4 ppt, PFHxS 16.1 ppt vs a limit of 10 ppt, where ppt = parts per trillion).
- Lead
- Below action level3 ppb (parts per billion) at the 90th percentile: 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below it. Action level 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in Nov 2027. Monitoring period ending Dec 2025. Your home's pipes can make yours higher.
- Violations
- Resolved1 health-based violation since 2016, most recently Mar 2021.
- Pregnant, or mixing baby formula with tap water? Babies drink more water for their size, so PFAS exposure matters more for them. Consider bottled water or a filter certified for PFAS for formula, and ask your doctor. Health effects.
- To lower your PFAS exposure now, a home filter certified for PFAS reduction works (reverse osmosis, or activated carbon certified to NSF/ANSI 53 or 58). Filters for these results.
- Built before 1986, or not sure what your service line is made of? Check your service line and test your tap. Utility data can't show your pipes.
- Tested your own tap? Compare your result with these numbers. Moving? Compare this system with another.
- Read City of Fort Worth's 2026 water quality report (Consumer Confidence Report, from the utility). It lists every regulated contaminant tested, including ones not on this page. Questions: (817) 392-6118.
PFAS (“forever chemicals”)
EPA UCMR 5: 5 entry points tested Jan 2023 to Jan 2024. "Average" is the highest entry-point average (non-detects counted as zero), the way EPA compares UCMR 5 results to the limits. ppt = parts per trillion. These results do not determine compliance.
| Contaminant | Highest average |
|---|---|
| PFOA Above limit Limit 4 ppt | 5.9 ppt 1.47× the limit |
| PFOS Above limit Limit 4 ppt | 6.17 ppt 1.54× the limit |
| PFHxS Above limit Limit 10 ppt | 16.1 ppt 1.61× the limit |
| PFNA Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| HFPO-DA (GenX) Not detected Limit 10 ppt | – |
| Hazard Index (a combined score for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and PFBS, where above 1 is over the limit) Above limit Limit 1 | 1.61 |
| PFBS Detected, below limit Guideline 2,000 ppt | 4.47 ppt |
| PFBA Detected, below limit Guideline 6,000 ppt | 8.63 ppt |
| PFHxA Detected, below limit Guideline 3,000 ppt | 7.8 ppt |
| PFPeA Detected, no limit | 5.3 ppt |
What the utility says it is doing: The Texas Water Development Board's SFY 2026 emerging-contaminants priority list includes a Fort Worth construction project, totaling about $177.3 million, to add granular activated carbon PFAS treatment at the South Holly water treatment plant.
Source: SFY 2026 DWSRF Emerging Contaminants Intended Use Plan, Appendix K Project Priority List (government record). Collected by us on Nov 14, 2026, not from EPA's data. Ask the utility for the latest.
For context: the PFOA average is higher than at 99% of the Texas systems EPA tested, the PFOS average is higher than at 98% of the Texas systems EPA tested and the PFHxS average is higher than at 99% of the Texas systems EPA tested.
29 PFAS tested, 7 detected at least once. "Not detected" means below EPA's reporting limit (about 2 to 20 ppt depending on the chemical), not proven zero. PFAS not listed were not detected. The limits for PFHxS, PFNA, GenX and the Hazard Index were proposed for rescission in May 2026. That proposal is not final. Systems have until 2029 to meet the limits.
Lithium
Not detected in 20 samples (reporting limit 9 ppb). About lithium.
Lead and copper
Latest 90th percentile: 3 ppb lead (Jan 2023 – Dec 2025). Below action level
Highest since 2016: 7.5 ppb (Dec 2020).
| Monitoring period | Lead (90th pct.) |
|---|---|
| Jan 2023 – Dec 2025 | 3 ppb |
| Jan 2022 – Dec 2022 | 3.3 ppb |
| Jan 2021 – Dec 2021 | 7 ppb |
Earlier results (9)
| Jan 2020 – Dec 2020 | 7.5 ppb |
| Jan 2017 – Dec 2019 | 4.7 ppb |
| Jan 2016 – Dec 2016 | 3.2 ppb |
| Jan 2013 – Dec 2015 | 6.9 ppb |
| Jan 2010 – Dec 2012 | 4.45 ppb |
| Jan 2007 – Dec 2009 | 4.88 ppb |
| Jan 2003 – Dec 2005 | 2.4 ppb |
| Jan 2000 – Dec 2002 | 3.9 ppb |
| Jan 1999 – Dec 1999 | 5.6 ppb |
Lead service lines: City of Fort Worth's inventory lists 0 lead, 32,590 galvanized lines that need replacing, 0 of unknown material out of 300,778 service lines (as of 2024-10-16). As published by the utility.
Look up your address · Source (the utility, collected by us on Nov 14, 2026, not EPA data) · Checking your own line
Lead comes from pipes and fixtures, not the source water, so it varies home to home. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 sampled homes were at or below it. More on lead.
Violations
| When | What happened |
|---|---|
| Mar 2021 | A required step to remove or kill germs (filtration, disinfection or fixing a contaminated well) was not done properly. EPA record: Long Term 2 Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule · Treatment Technique (SWTR and GWR) (limit ) Resolved |
Health-based violations mean a contaminant exceeded a limit or a required treatment step was missed. Monitoring and reporting violations mean required tests or reports were late or missing, so the water's quality during that time is unknown. The total includes every violation in EPA's records, most of them paperwork.
Earlier EPA testing (2013–2020)
| Contaminant | Highest | Guideline |
|---|---|---|
| Manganese | 4.19 ppb | 300 ppb |
| Chromium-6 | 0.14 ppb | – |
| Molybdenum | 2.5 ppb | 40 ppb |
| Vanadium | 1.6 ppb | 21 ppb |
| Chlorate | 720 ppb | 210 ppb |
| Strontium | 0.33 ppm | 1.5 ppm |
Where it serves
Fort Worth
48 ZIP codes the system reported serving
76008, 76028, 76036, 76040, 76052, 76053, 76101, 76102, 76103, 76104, 76105, 76106, 76107, 76108, 76109, 76110, 76111, 76112, 76113, 76114, 76115, 76116, 76117, 76118, 76119, 76120, 76122, 76123, 76126, 76127, 76129, 76131, 76132, 76133, 76134, 76135, 76137, 76140, 76150, 76155, 76161, 76164, 76177, 76179, 76181, 76244, 76247, 76262
Nearby utilities
- City of Haltom City Haltom City · 5 mi · PFAS above limit
- City of North Richland Hills North Richland Hills · 9 mi
- City of Arlington Arlington · 14 mi
- City of Euless Euless · 16 mi
- City of Burleson Burleson · 18 mi
- City of Grapevine Grapevine · 19 mi
Questions
Is Fort Worth tap water safe to drink?
Most of Fort Worth gets its water from City of Fort Worth. City of Fort Worth had 1 health-based violation since 2016, all since resolved. EPA testing found PFAS above the 2024 federal limits, which systems must meet by 2029. Federal data can't tell you about your own pipes: lead comes from service lines and plumbing, so test your tap if your home was built before 1986. For the official word, read the utility's annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Does Fort Worth water have PFAS?
Yes. EPA's 2023–2025 testing of City of Fort Worth found 7 PFAS at least once. The highest entry-point averages were above the federal limit for PFOA and PFOS and PFHxS: PFOA 5.9 ppt, PFOS 6.17 ppt, PFHxS 16.1 ppt (limit 4 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, 10 ppt for the others).
What is the lead level in Fort Worth water?
The most recent 90th-percentile lead result for City of Fort Worth is 3 ppb, for the period ending Dec 2025. The federal action level is 15 ppb, falling to 10 ppb in November 2027. The 90th percentile means 9 in 10 homes sampled were at or below this number. Individual homes can be higher.
Check these numbers yourself
Every figure on this page comes from public EPA records. You don't have to take our word for it:
- EPA's own report for TX2200012: violations, enforcement and inspections, straight from EPA.
- EPA UCMR 5 data: the PFAS and lithium results (search the file for PWSID TX2200012).
- EPA SDWIS download: the lead results, population and violation records we use.
- City of Fort Worth's 2026 water quality report: the utility's own annual report, including contaminants EPA's national database doesn't carry (link checked Nov 14, 2026). Phone: (817) 392-6118.
- City of Fort Worth website
Found something that doesn't match? Tell us and we'll check it against EPA's records. How we check our data.
Source: U.S. EPA drinking water records and PFAS testing (UCMR 5). How we read the data.