Courtesy of KJAM news; www.amazingmadison.com
The City of Madison is now able to access up to one million gallons of water a day through its “wheeling plan” that it has put in place. The water is available to the city through a cooperative effort involving the Lewis and Clark Regional Water System, the Minnehaha Community Water Corporation, and the Big Sioux Community Water System. The added capacity will supplement the city’s existing water supply, and it all became operational this week.
How the plan works is that Lewis and Clark is selling water to Minnehaha Community Water Corporation at its connection near Crooks. In turn, Minnehaha Community Water Corporation is selling water to the Big Sioux Community Water System in the northern part of its system. Big Sioux is in turn using five miles of Lewis and Clark’s pipeline to sell water to Madison.
Lewis and Clark Executive Director Troy Larson says that Madison isn’t specifically receiving Lewis and Clark’s water, but it can now access up to one-million gallons a day of high quality water from Big Sioux. Larson says this will address Madison’s immediate water needs until Lewis & Clark can eventually complete the 32 miles of pipeline still needed to connect Madison.
Funding to make the wheeling plan possible came through the state. Larson says that Governor Dennis Daugaard, the state Legislature, the state Board of Water and Natural Resources, and the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources offered support the last few years as the plan was put together.