Lafayette
Lafayette, LA water profile — supply sources, drought status, wastewater reuse, and the key water issues facing the city.
lafayette utilities water system
groundwater (wells) · local government · PWSID LA1055017
Below EPA's 15 ppb lead action level at last testing.
Source: EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS) · 2026 Q1
Lafayette is a mid-sized city and the 6th-largest in Louisiana, home to roughly 127,657 residents. Lafayette's drinking water comes largely from the same regional sources that serve Louisiana: Mississippi River, Sparta aquifer, and Chicot aquifer.
As elsewhere in Louisiana, the central challenge is saltwater intrusion. Mississippi River saltwater intrusion during low-flow periods has threatened New Orleans-area drinking water.
Louisiana reuses an estimated 4% of its treated wastewater and maintains minimal reuse programs; Lafayette tracks severe to extreme drought conditions on the U.S. Drought Monitor scale.
Explore the Louisiana profile for statewide context, or dig into the water issues shaping Lafayette below.
Lafayette Parish County water quality
Source: EPA SDWIS · 2026 Q1
At a glance
- Population ~127,657 (6th-largest in Louisiana)
- Primary sources: Mississippi River, Sparta aquifer, and Chicot aquifer
- Drought: severe to extreme conditions
- State reuse rate: ~4% of wastewater
Statewide drought history
% of Louisiana in severe+ drought (Extreme (D3) now).
Source: U.S. Drought Monitor
Common questions
Is tap water safe in Lafayette?
Lafayette's largest water system, LAFAYETTE UTILITIES WATER SYSTEM, serves about 169,389 people. EPA records show 0 health-based violation(s) since 2016 and a most-recent 90th-percentile lead level of 0 ppb (EPA action level is 15 ppb). Always check your own provider's annual Consumer Confidence Report.
Where does Lafayette get its water?
LAFAYETTE UTILITIES WATER SYSTEM draws primarily from groundwater (wells), part of Louisiana's supply from Mississippi River, Sparta aquifer, Chicot aquifer.
Related water issues
Saltwater Intrusion
As coastal aquifers are over-pumped and seas rise, saltwater pushes inland and contaminates freshwater supplies for cities from Florida to California.
ExploreGroundwater Depletion
Aquifers from the Central Valley to the Ogallala are being pumped faster than they recharge, causing land subsidence and threatening long-term supply.
ExploreAging Infrastructure
Much of America's water infrastructure is decades past its design life, leaking trillions of gallons a year and demanding hundreds of billions in reinvestment.
Explore