TEA, S.D.  — The Lewis & Clark Regional Water System has started delivering water to Worthington in southwestern Minnesota.

The system began delivering water to Worthington on Monday. The city is the 15th connected member of the system that serves South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa.

Worthington has a reserved capacity of 1.9 million gallons a day from Lewis & Clark that will be blended with the city’s existing water sources.

Scott Hain is general manager of Worthington Public Utilities and also serves on Lewis & Clark’s board of directors. Hain says the effort to get water from Lewis & Clark took longer than expected, but the additional source of water will benefit the city.

After years of construction, Lewis & Clark began delivering water in 2012. Five more members have yet to be connected to the system.