Nashville gets its drinking water from the Cumberland River. Metro Water Services, the city’s utility, pulls raw water from the river, treats it at two large plants, and pipes it to more than 226,500 customer accounts across Davidson County and parts of the surrounding area.1Metro Water Services. 2025 MWS Annual Report The treated water meets or exceeds every federal and state drinking water standard.2Metro Water Services. 2024 Consumer Confidence Report
Why the Cumberland River
The Cumberland is one of the largest waterways in the southeastern United States, and it runs right through the middle of Nashville. MWS draws water from it through underwater intake pipes fitted with screens that catch leaves, branches, and other debris before anything reaches the treatment plants. The river carries far more water past the city each day than Nashville uses, so supply holds up even in dry stretches.
The tradeoff is that surface water picks up more along the way than groundwater does. Sediment, agricultural runoff, and stormwater all end up in the Cumberland, which makes treatment more involved than it would be for a deep well. MWS monitors river conditions continuously and adjusts the process in response to storms, seasonal changes, and upstream activity.
How Nashville’s Water Is Treated
Raw river water moves through several stages before it reaches your tap. After the intake screens, MWS adds alum, which causes suspended particles like dirt and clay to clump together and settle to the bottom of large tanks. Powdered activated carbon goes in early as well, absorbing the compounds that cause taste and odor problems after heavy rains or during warm-weather algae blooms.
The water then runs through layered filters of anthracite, sand, and gravel to catch the finer particles. Chlorine is added to kill bacteria, viruses, and other pathogens. MWS also doses the water with phosphate, which coats the inside of older pipes and reduces the chance of lead or copper leaching in, and a small amount of fluoride at about 0.7 mg/L to help prevent tooth decay.3Metro Water Services. 2022 Consumer Confidence Report
Two plants do all of this work. The K.R. Harrington Water Treatment Plant is rated at 112 million gallons per day, and the R.L. Lawrence (Omohundro) plant is rated at 90 million. Together they can produce over 200 million gallons a day, comfortably above the city’s typical demand of around 109 million.1Metro Water Services. 2025 MWS Annual Report
Is Nashville Tap Water Safe to Drink
Yes. Nashville’s drinking water is regulated under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, which sets limits for more than 90 contaminants,4US Environmental Protection Agency. Safe Drinking Water Act and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation enforces those rules along with the state’s own standards.5Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. Division of Water Resources MWS tests the water before, during, and after treatment, and publishes the results each year in a Consumer Confidence Report. The most recent one confirms Nashville’s water meets every applicable standard.2Metro Water Services. 2024 Consumer Confidence Report Current and past reports are posted on the MWS water quality page, and the utility also posts real-time notices if a boil-water advisory is ever issued in your area.6Nashville.gov. Water Quality Reports
Lead Service Lines in Older Homes
One caveat is worth knowing if you live in an older house. Like many cities with historic neighborhoods, Nashville still has some lead service lines connecting water mains to individual properties, mostly in areas built before the 1950s. The phosphate added during treatment helps by coating pipe interiors, but the long-term fix is replacing the lines, and MWS has been doing that on the public side whenever crews encounter them during other work.7Nashville.gov. Eliminate: Service Line Replacement
Under the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule Improvements, water systems have ten years to replace all lead service lines.8US Environmental Protection Agency. Final LCRI Fact Sheet – Deferred Deadlines MWS has already finished a service line inventory using records back to 1904, metal testing, and customer surveys, and the results are posted on an interactive map. If your line was identified as lead, as galvanized requiring replacement, or as unknown material as of December 2025, you should have received a notification. If you own an older home and haven’t checked, the map tells you what’s connecting your house to the main.9Nashville.gov. Inform: Water Service Line Inventory
What About Hardness
Nashville’s water comes in around 100 mg/L of total hardness, which falls in the “moderately hard” range.2Metro Water Services. 2024 Consumer Confidence Report You may see some mineral buildup on faucets and showerheads over time, but the water is noticeably softer than what’s typical in cities that pull from limestone-heavy groundwater. Most Nashville households don’t need a softener, though some install one by preference.