Monday, Feb 21 2011 5:24PM
Wyoming lawmakers have passed a bill to extend a water pipeline to Gillette.
Wyoming has approved an additional $50 million in funding toward a project that will extend water system services to the small city of Gillette and its surrounding rural communities, reported the Wyoming Business Report.
A bill that granted the funding quickly passed through the state's House and Senate, reported the paper, allowing the state to come one step closer in breaking ground on the Gillette Regional Water Supply Project. The bill offered a portion of the $206 million necessary for the water expansion, which would drill additional wells in the Madison Foundation located about 40 miles from Gillette, and then pump it to the community.
The legislation is now waiting for the approval of Governor Matt Mead, who is expected to sign it into law, according to the newspaper. Mead told the paper he supported the initiative and believed it was necessary to support the state's growing population.
"The city of Gillette needs to maintain basic services for continued growth to ensure the state of Wyoming and the Gillette area maintain our status as a national energy leader," he said.
Clean water is needed sooner rather than later for the health of those in growing communities. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that many Americans in outlying areas still depend on groundwater wells for water, although that supply may not be completely sanitary, as Environmental Protection Agency regulations do not cover private supplies.