City earns award for third consecutive year
The City of Yakima successfully defended its “Best Tasting Water” title as it recently took first place in the 2025 Central Washington Best Tasting Water contest. This is the third consecutive year the City has won the award.
“Winning this award three years in a row is a clear reflection of the hard work and dedication by our water treatment and distribution employees, as with all of our Water/Irrigation Division employees,” said Water/Irrigation Manager Mike Shane.
The competition was held Wednesday, March 19th, in Yakima and was hosted by the Central Washington Subsection of the American Water Works Association (AWWA). Entries for the competition were submitted by the cities of Yakima, Walla Walla, Richland, College Place, as well as the Nob Hill Water Association.
The City of Yakima now advances to the Pacific Northwest AWWA competition in Boise, Idaho this May. Winner of that competition will compete nationally at the AWWA Annual Conference and Expo in Denver, Colorado this June.
The City of Yakima is no stranger to drinking water awards.
Besides winning the 2023, 2024 and 2025 Central Washington “Best Tasting Water” competition, the city’s Water Treatment Plant has received the Gold Certificate of Achievement. The certificate is presented by the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) Office of Drinking Water for meeting the high standards of DOH’s Treatment Optimization Program for 10 continuous years.
Click Water Treatment & Water Quality | Water and Irrigation (yakimawa.gov) for more about the City of Yakima’s water system.
