The elected six-member board contains three members each from Benton and Washington counties.

In 2003, residents near Monte Ne filed a complaint with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) that alleged BWD was polluting the bay with untreated process water from filter backwashing.

Aluminum sulfate (alum), used as a flocculation agent in drinking water treatment, was alleged to be 10 feet (3.0 m) deep in places and was lining the limestone channels of the cove.

Soil samples indicated elevated levels of arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, and mercury.

BWD was ordered to pay a $9,000 fine for eight violations of its NPDES permit under the Clean Water Act.