South Dakota U.S. Senators John Thune and Mike Rounds are supporting a bill that would bring a proposed water initiative for the western side of the state closer to reality.
This week (Jan. 29, 2026), Thune introduced the “Western South Dakota Water Supply Project Feasibility Study Act” on behalf of himself and Rounds. The bill includes a $10 million appropriation for the Bureau of Reclamation– under the Department of the Interior– to do the feasibility study for a proposed project to supply water from the Missouri River to municipal, rural and industrial customers in western South Dakota. The feasibility study is required before federal approval could be granted for construction to begin.
Kristin Conzet, Executive Director of the Western Dakota Regional Water System, said they’ve spent several years completing preliminary feasibility work to intentionally position the project for federal review. Those efforts include evaluating potential Missouri River and Lake Oahe intake locations, assessing interconnections with existing regional water infrastructure, and developing preliminary pipeline routing concepts. She said the proposed legislation is a critical step toward long term water reliability for western South Dakota.
WDRWS was formed in late 2021, with initial technical and planning efforts beginning in 2022.
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