HUTCHINSON (AP) — A Finney County businessman and farmer and the city of Garden City have been honored by the state for their work to extend the Ogallala Aquifer.

Tom Willis, who operates two southwest Kansas ethanol plants and has a farm in Finney County, and the city of Garden City were among those honored at the Governor’s Water Conference this month in Manhattan.

The Hutchinson News reports (http://j.mp/2fzcfmm) that more than 550 people attended the water conference.

A Kansas State University study says if nothing changes, 70 percent of the Ogallala will be depleted by 2064.

Other honorees included, Spirit AeroSystems, which was honored for its collaboration with the city of Wichita to build a 3-mile dedicated pipeline connecting the company’s manufacturing operations to a city water treatment facility.