A total of $17.5 million in federal funding for FY21 will help propel ongoing construction of the Lewis & Clark Regional Water System, bringing it closer to delivering water to Sioux Center.
“This is really good news and we are very pleased,” said Lewis & Clark Executive Director Troy Larson. “A big thank you to the tristate congressional delegation for their hard work to secure additional funding for Reclamation’s Rural Water Program. Their continued strong bipartisan support and leadership is greatly appreciated. Our thanks and appreciation as well to the Bureau of Reclamation. They continue to be outstanding partners.”
The funding will be used to complete construction already underway on a 16-million-gallons-per day collector well near Vermillion and a 2.5-million-gallon water tower at Beresford. A contract will be awarded later this year that includes three items – construction of the Sioux Center meter building, expansion of the Hull meter building and adding pumps to the Beresford pump station.
“When construction of all [these] projects is complete, which is expected no later than the spring of 2023, we will begin delivering long-awaited water to Sioux Center and Hull,” Larson said.
The administration had proposed $100,000 for Lewis & Clark in its FY21 Budget. The tristate delegation worked with their colleagues to help secure an additional $114.7 million for the Rural Water Program. Reclamation then allocated $17.4 million of that to Lewis & Clark to add to the $100,000.
The Lewis & Clark Regional Water System is a non-profit wholesale provider of water to its member cities and rural water systems in, northwest Iowa, southeast South Dakokta and southwest Minnesota. The water source is a series of wells adjacent to the Missouri River and has a treatment plant near Vermillion. Construction began in 2004 and the system is currently serving water to 15 of its 20 members. Members yet to be connected include Hull, Sioux Center, Sheldon, Sibley and Madison.