Rural Water

Little Blue Public Water Project 

The Litle Blue Public Water Project serves over 410 domestic, business, and livestock uses in Thayer and Jefferson counties in Nebraska and north central Washington county in Kansas.  This includes the villages of Gilead and Gladstone, rural churches, Endicott Clay and numerous other services.   Water is purchased from the City of Fairbury and piped through over 300 miles of buried lines to provide quality water service (view map). The project utilizes 3 pumphouses and 2 water towers to deliver the water. 

Low water availability and poor water quality were serious issues facing the residents of the Little Blue NRD’s southeastern region and into Kansas.  The rural population of this area had been exposed for some time to poor water quality problems such as sodium, iron and sulfur with extreme hardness and odor present.  After being approached by the local rural populace of Jefferson county, the need for a good quality water source became apparent, and the Little Blue NRD took action.  The Little Blue Public Water Project was completed in 1976, with a major expansion in 1999, to supply continuous, quality water service to residents of the area. The Project is financially self-supporting and operates almost exclusively (96%) on water sales income from the customers.