The Nebraska Rural Water held their annual conference in Kearney March 9-11. Many city employees from the state gathered at the Younes Conference Center ready to learn about a variety of topics related to public water systems.
What is a public water system?
Public Water systems provide water for human consumption through pipes or other constructed conveyances to at least 15 service connections or serve an average of at least 25 people for at least 60 days a year.
A public water system can be publicly or privately owned. The Nebraska Rural Water Association (NeRWA), in Wahoo is a nonprofit organization that supports rural water systems across Nebraska by providing training, technical aid, and resources for safe and reliable water management.
NeRWA offers training, seminars, and information on water and wastewater management to its members. This includes over 577 municipal and rural water districts. Our local town-city employees in Clay County have been represented by attending this conference throughout the years. During the conference a, “State of Nebraska best tasting drinking water” contest is held.
Each city has the option to participate by bringing a one-gallon water sample, collected prior to any treatment, from one of its municipal wells to the conference for judging. A panel of four judges evaluates the samples across six different categories.
The water samples are placed in clean drinking glasses. The water panelist follows the criteria of appearance of water must be clear and bright, Aroma of no scent, Taste is clean and refreshing, Mouth feel is feeling of light, not heavy, and after a taste of leaving a “wanting more feeling.”
This year, the City of Clay Center, Kevin Thompson, attended the Nebraska Rural Water Association Annual Conference. Thompson and other attendees entered the city drinking water samples and patiently waited for the results.
The first-place winner of the 2026 State of Nebraska best-tasting drinking water is …Clay Center. Job well done! The next step for the best tasting water level is Nationals which will be sometime in 2027.
