Western Dakota Regional Water System Holds Second Annual Conference

(RAPID CITY, S.D.) — Western Dakota Regional Water System (WDRWS) is hosting its second annual conference. WDRWS is a nonprofit organization formed to plan, construct and manage the delivery of Missouri River water to communities, tribes and other rural water systems throughout western South Dakota. The event will be held on Tuesday, November 29, at the New Underwood Community Center. The summit begins with registration at 8 a.m. and a welcoming address at 9 a.m., then lunch at noon. The conference will conclude at 3 p.m. 

WDRWS is currently raising funds for a 25 percent matching grant of $1 million from the State Water Resources Management System. Out of the $250,000 fundraising goal, WDRWS has raised $183,500. Contributors include: West River Lyman Jones Water System ($25,000), the City of New Underwood ($1,000), Pennington County, ($50,000), City of Rapid City, ($100,000) and Meade County ($7,500).

The first half of the conference will focus on education. These presentations will include discussions and addresses from representatives from the Bureau of Reclamation, the USGS, South Dakota Mines, the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the author of the Mni Wiconi legislations, Mario Gonzales.

A panel discussion will be held over lunch, featuring the mayors of Rapid City, Box Elder, New Underwood, Spearfish and the Pennington County Commissioner. This panel will be moderated by Tom Johnson, the President and CEO of Elevate Rapid City. Following lunch, the annual meeting will be held, covering the progress of planning and the feasibility study.

Speakers at the event include South Dakota Senator John Thune and South Dakota State Senator Helene Duhamel. The event is free and open to the public but attendees are encouraged to register in advance via EventBrite. Registration is open through November 28, 2022. 

Dale Tech, President of WDRWS, stated that: “Water use in western South Dakota is already at levels where, if we have years of prolonged drought, we will have water shortages. If our population continues to grow at a rapid rate, we will quickly outpace the capacity of our water supply even in years of average precipitation. Building a pipeline from the Missouri River is a crucial step to ensure future water security for western South Dakota, and we invite the public to join us and learn more about the project.”

For more information or to register for the summit, contact Cheryl Chapman at (605) 484-0334.