South Dakotan tells Congress of ‘growing water security risk’ if pipeline project is delayed
Apr 16, 2026 | 4:24 pm ET
Description
Kristin Conzet, R-Rapid City, is pictured in the South Dakota House of Representatives on March 5, 2024, during her time as a legislator. She is now the executive director of the Western Dakota Regional Water System and recently testified to Congress in support of funding for a water pipeline feasibility study. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)
The leader of a proposed water pipeline project told a U.S. House panel Thursday that delaying the next federal step toward bringing Missouri River water to western South Dakota poses a “growing water security risk” for the region, and a drought is making things worse.
Kristin Conzet, executive director of the Western Dakota Regional Water System, said studies show the region’s “aquifers are currently under stress and will not meet the current or the future population growth during an extended drought period.”
Conzet’s testimony came during a House Natural Resources subcommittee hearing on a bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota. It would provide $10 million for a Bureau of Reclamation feasibility study.
Conzet said the project area, including Rapid City, is “one of the only major regions in the state without a reliable, long-term water supply to meet community, rural, agricultural, economical, tribal, and national defense needs.”
The water system has received $12 million from the state and has completed five years of foundational work, including demand projections, intake evaluations and regional system planning. The project is expected to cost billions of dollars.
Conzet also tied the proposal to Ellsworth Air Force Base and the impending arrival of B-21 bomber planes, which are under development. She told lawmakers that “reliable water is essential to mission readiness and sustained operations.”
A similar bill is pending in the U.S. Senate, sponsored by Majority Leader John Thune and cosponsored by Sen. Mike Rounds, who are both Republicans from South Dakota.
U.S. House committee video of a hearing including testimony from Kristin Conzet, executive director of the Western Dakota Regional Water System, with an introduction and comments by U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-South Dakota.
Pierre, SD
