BEULAH - Beulah is about to solve a small pocket of water problems, but not on a permanent basis.

Beulah's water treatment plant will be the interim source of water piped to the town of Zap, to residents between Zap and Beulah and to the Country Club estates south of Beulah.

Beulah will provide water until the Southwest Water Pipeline project builds a water treatment plant north of Zap.

The pipeline project is undergoing an environmental assessment in order to qualify for a federal Rural Development grant and loan combination of just over $1 million.

The treatment plant is targeted for construction in 2007 and will be an integral part of the Southwest Pipeline's final phase to get treated Lake Sakakawea water to Mercer, Oliver and northern Dunn counties. Otherwise, in other southwestern North Dakota counties, the pipeline delivers water treated at Dickinson.

The Southwest Water Pipeline will construct the pipeline from Beulah to Zap and to the Country Club estates, eventually filling it with water from the Zap treatment plant instead of Beulah's.

Joe Bichler, an engineer for the project, said the pipeline connecting to Beulah's water treatment plant should be done by October 2007.

Beulah City Planner John Phillips said the pipeline will provide opportunity along the way.

He said on the way to Country Club estates it will go past the town's golf course, airport and park and come fairly close to the Coyote power plant and Dakota Westmoreland's Knife River coal mine.

Phillips said the delivery of treated water to Country Club estates will make life better because it will replace well water that's high in iron and other minerals.

He said the treated water could make the remaining lots there more attractive, if people don't have to drill wells for marginal water.

Zap voted to take Southwest Pipeline water in 2000 and Bichler said using water from Beulah is a way to fulfill the obligation until the water treatment plant north of Zap can be built.

Phillips said Beulah also has a softening plant in its water treatment and plenty of capacity to serve Zap and other rural residences.