The Fall River Water Users District got the final go-ahead from the state on Thursday to drill a well into the Madison Aquifer near Hot Springs.

Under the permit, the district will be allowed to pump up to 450 gallons of water per minute. The well will be drilled along Fall River Road between Hot Springs and Maverick Junction, according to officials with the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Thirteen area residents contested the permit originally. But only two of the original petitioners, Georgia Sample and Brenda Gamache, testified in March before the South Dakota Water Management Board, which gave preliminary verbal approval at that meeting, according to Eric Gronlund of the DENR's water rights program.

The board gave its final approval at a meeting in Pierre on Thursday. Gronlund said there is a 30-day period to appeal the ruling to the circuit court.

The permit allows the district to take up to 724 acre-feet of water each year from the Madison. An acre-foot is the amount that would cover one acre to a depth of one foot. It equals 325,850 gallons of water.

The permit allows the district to pump at a maximum rate of 1 cubic feet per second, which translates to nearly 450 gallons per minute, Gronlund said.

Steve Harper, general manager of the water district, said the new well is needed to supply water to its growing number of customers.

Harper said the district has about 300 meters on its lines, many of which are ranches. The water from the new well will be used both for human and livestock consumption, he said.

Harper said the district will now begin exploring funding options.

But he said the new well shouldn't cost as much as a well it is completing near Buffalo Gap at a price tag of just over $1 million. That well will serve customers at the northern end of the district. He said he hopes that well, which is 3,110 feet deep, is finished by the end of May.

The new well shouldn't be as deep, he said. He expects it will reach the Madison at about 2,000 feet deep.