FALL RIVER COUNTY, S.D.- Two men died Wednesday morning in a single-vehicle crash three miles south of Edgemont, SD.

The names of the persons involved have not been released pending notification of family members.

Preliminary crash information indicates the driver and passenger of a 2001 Ford F250 were headed southbound on SD Hwy. 471 when the vehicle ran off the roadway then returned to the southbound lane, over-corrected and went off the roadway again, down an embankment, and rolled several times. The occupants were not wearing seatbelts and both sustained fatal injuries.

The South Dakota Highway Patrol is investigating the crash. All information released so far is only preliminary.

The Highway Patrol is an agency of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.

 

PENNINGTON COUNTY, S.D.- An 87-year-old man died Wednesday afternoon in a single-vehicle crash three miles west of Keystone, SD.

The name of the person involved has not been released pending notification of family members.

Preliminary crash information indicates the driver of a 2023 Nissan Terrain was traveling eastbound on SD Highway 244 when the vehicle left the roadway, entering the south ditch. The vehicle struck an embankment which caused the vehicle to roll, coming to final rest on its top. The driver was pronounced deceased at the scene.

The South Dakota Highway Patrol is investigating the crash. All information released so far is only preliminary.

The Highway Patrol is an agency of the South Dakota Department of Public Safety.

 

NEBRASKA (Deborah Van Fleet/Nebraska News Connection) – CO2 pipelines are on the increase in the United States, and like all pipelines, they come with risks. Preparing for those risks is a major focus of the Community Benefits Agreement between Nebraska-based Bold Alliance and Tallgrass Energy Solutions.

Tallgrass plans to modify an existing gas pipeline that crosses Nebraska to transport CO2.

Bold Alliance Director Jane Kleeb said her organization stands with communities facing energy infrastructure projects, to help ensure they have what they need and that the company is giving back. She pointed to Satartia, Mississippi’s 2020 experience with a massive CO2 pipeline leak as evidence of the importance of first-responder training.

“We have real money in here,” she said, “$400,000 initially, and then an additional $200,000 for training and $100,000 for an emergency response system that first responders will get, to equip their mostly-volunteer firefighters.”

Not only did the Mississippi first responders lack the training for a CO2 disaster, Kleeb said, but some were unaware the pipeline even existed.

Tallgrass has said it will conduct yearly training for first responders in the 10-county area, and send yearly notices to all landowners along the route. Kleeb said she expects the firefighter training to begin within the next few months.

CO2 is colorless, odorless and displaces oxygen, making it potentially deadly. It can disable internal-combustion engines on vehicles needed for evacuation. Although CO2 pipelines cover more than 5,000 miles in the United States and continue to be built, Kleeb said federal regulations aren’t yet in place.

“For folks listening, you may be, like, ‘What do you mean they don’t have regulations in place?’ And that’s what we’ve been saying for the last few years: We need regulations in place,” she said. “No pipeline will go into operation in our state until those regulations are finished, and Tallgrass then knows the type of safety valves and other things they have to put in place to be in compliance.”

This month, a pipeline rupture in Sulphur, Louisiana, leaked more than 2,600 barrels of CO2 and took two hours to control.

Another provision in the Community Benefits Agreement is annual royalty payments, which Kleeb calls a “significant win” for Nebraska landowners.

“Landowners are now going to be getting 10 cents per metric ton that is sequestered of the carbon,” she said. “So, that could be up to $1 million every year that will go back to landowners in the path of this pipeline.”

Kleeb said no pipeline companies in the Midwest currently pay landowners a royalty for use of their land.

 

PIERRE, S.D. – In Pierre there is a committee for pretty much everything, and one of the newest started putting plans in place for a celebration of the 100th session of the South Dakota Legislature.  Of course that session is next year’s session and the celebration plans have started with an all-lawmakers reunion scheduled for Saturday, April 12, 2025.

That decision was reached Wednesday during a meeting of the One Hundredth Session Planning Committee.  More details will be announced as the event at the Pierre Ramkota River Centre draws closer.

The 2025 session opens Tuesday, January 14. The 37-day main run finishes March 13. Lawmakers return on March 31 for consideration of any vetoes and any other unfinished matters.

The committee also discussed other ways to commemorate the 100th session, such as removable displays about the Legislature’s history and workings, and an informational video that can be distributed to schools and other groups.

There are also plans for developing a 100th logo and a special website.

Representative Tony Venhuizen chairs the 9-member committee and he said the State Historical Society Foundation will be used to receive donations and make payments. “We won’t have this go through the state (budget process) at all,” he said.

 

DES MOINES, IA – Presidents from Iowa’s three public universities told the Board of Regents that their institutions will be closing their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion offices. The savings from the University of Iowa and Iowa State University closing these offices is more than a million dollars. This comes on the heels of a mandate from the legislature and Board of Regents to overhaul DEI programs and enhance civics education.

DEI positions that are necessary for accreditation or compliance with state and federal law will not be impacted.

University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson says the university is starting a civic dialogue initiative pilot program next fall.

They plan to train Resident Assistants, or RAs, to teach students to talk to each other across differences. “This initiative will really get students to think about how do you come to the table? How do you listen to others who are different from you? How do you find common ground? How do you stay curious instead of judgmental?,” Wilson said.

Also, “We also will be prohibiting anybody from requiring pronouns, and that will be added to all syllabi for all courses as of the fall,” Wilson said.

Regent Universities are planning to increase intellectual diversity of their staff by advertising openings in different publications like the Wall Street Journal and New York Times.

Wendy Wintersteen, President of Iowa State, said they want to make their campus more comfortable for students from rural communities.

“So one of the first things we did was establish learning communities so that a young man, young white man, from rural Iowa, could come and be in a learning community and find the place where they could belong,” Wintersteen said.

The University of Northern Iowa is planning to create the “Center for Civic Education”.

UNI President Mark Nook says the center will benefit their students, K-12 students, and the broader public. “It will promote the values of free speech, civic leadership, public service, and participatory citizenship,” Nook said.

UNI says their Center for Civics Education will cost about $300,000 per year to run.

In the final days of the legislative session, lawmakers passed a ban on DEI programs at universities. While Governor Kim Reynolds has yet to sign the bill, the presidents say they’re reviewing the bill and will make any tweaks as needed.