PIERRE — Last week, the South Dakota Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources announced that the Brookings-Deuel Rural Water System public water system and the system’s operation specialists have been awarded a Secretary’s Award for Drinking Water Excellence.

“Repeated success is a true measure of excellence,” said DANR Secretary Hunter Roberts. “With more than 19 years of consecutive compliance, the Brookings-Deuel Rural Water System has demonstrated its commitment to providing its customers with safe and reliable drinking water.”

To qualify for the Secretary’s Award for Drinking Water Excellence, public water systems and their system operations specialists had to meet all the compliance monitoring and reporting requirements, drinking water standards, and certification requirements for ten consecutive years or more.