In 2006, Arkansas DEQ listed Clear Creek for E. coli. 12 years later, the creek attained the recreation standard in 2018, restoring contact recreation after BMP projects

In 2006, the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment's Division of Environmental Quality listed 13.5 miles of Clear Creek as impaired after E. coli levels exceeded the state's criterion for primary and secondary contact recreation. Twelve years later, Clear Creek showed attainment of the E. coli criterion and supported primary and secondary contact beneficial uses for the first time since the impairment listing, according to Arkansas' EPA-approved 2018 Clean Water Act Section 303(d) list.

The improvement followed years of water quality monitoring, education and outreach, along with green stormwater infrastructure and other urban best management practices across the watershed.