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EPA bureaucracy gets in the way of protecting environment, North Dakota official says

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EPA bureaucracy gets in the way of protecting environment, North Dakota official says


Jim Semerad, left, and Marty Haroldson of the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality were part of a panel discussion Sept. 4, 2024, at a conference in Bismarck. (Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)

Wildfire smoke wafted over North Dakota on Wednesday. For Jim Semerad of the Department of Environmental Quality, that will mean more work. 

That’s because the department will have to show the federal Environmental Protection Agency that the smoke is actually coming from wildfires and not some other source of air pollution. 

“We will go through a great deal of effort to prove something we already know,” said Semerad, who leads the department’s air quality division. 

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Semerad and others from the department were speaking Wednesday at a North Dakota Regional Environmental Conference in Bismarck. The conference was organized by the Air and Waste Management Association

Semerad said staying on top of the ballooning amount of federal regulations can make it difficult for the agency to focus on what is really important — ensuring good environmental health. 

The department sent a news release Wednesday morning advising the public of the air quality issues because of the wildfire smoke. 

Semerad said EPA staff are well-intentioned but EPA bureaucracy gets in the way of protecting environmental quality. 

“Our biggest problem might be the EPA,” Semerad said. 

Chuck Hyatt, of DEQ’s waste management division, said one of the biggest roadblocks to working with the EPA is a lack of trust. 

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“They don’t necessarily trust what is going on in certain states,” Hyatt said. “And I wonder about that. Where does that come from?” 

North Dakota has several ongoing legal battles with the EPA, including being the lead state challenging a mercury emissions rule that North Dakota officials have said threatens the state’s lignite coal industry

Wednesday’s agenda included a session by Erik Wallevand, a lawyer in the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office, on tips for challenging federal regulations. 

With factors such as federal regulations, retirements and other staff turnover, Semerad said something new for the department is struggling to keep up with clean air permits. 

Semerad said there may be a request for more staff in the 2025 legislative session. 

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Semerad acknowledged that some of the workload comes from Mother Nature, with North Dakota being a state of extreme temperatures and weather and random events, such as wildfires. 

“It’s kind of an invisible thing,” Semerad said of the work created by wildfires. “No additional inspections, no additional improvements to air quality. It’s just a reporting requirement. 

“I guess that might be something that the Legislature needs to better understand.”

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North Dakota

ND State Fair completes 2026 grandstand lineup with EDM artist Zedd, ‘Turn Up ND!’

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ND State Fair completes 2026 grandstand lineup with EDM artist Zedd, ‘Turn Up ND!’


MINOT, N.D. (KMOT) – We now know the entertainers who will round out this year’s North Dakota State Fair grandstand lineup.

In what is a first for the state fair, Zedd will put on an EDM show at the grandstand on Friday, July 24. He’s an award-winning artist and DJ, known for hits like ‘Clarity’ and ‘The Middle.’

The show will feature immersive production, sound and visuals. Tickets will be just over $58, including fees.

The fair wraps up on Saturday, July 25, with this year’s ‘Turn Up ND’ show. It features TI, Da-Baby and Waka Flocka Flame.

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All three have made a name for themselves in the trap and hip-hop music genres.

Tickets for this show are just over $78, including fees.

So here’s a look at the full lineup, which is packed with some major stars, featuring Alex Warren, Jon Pardi, Jessie Murph, Niko Moon and Zach Top.

The fair will hold two days of the popular MHA Indian Horse Relays on July 20 and 21.

For information on tickets, dates and more, go to ndstatefair.com.

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Darlene Struble

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Darlene Struble


Darlene Kay Struble was born April 11, 1946 in Valley City, ND to Frank and Ruby (Satreaas) Klima. She grew up in LaMoure, ND and graduated from LaMoure High School 1964. After graduation, Darlene continued her education at North Dakota State School of Science in Wahpeton before completing her LPN training in Grand Forks. 

Darlene married the love of her life, Charles Struble, on October 25, 1969 at Trinity Lutheran Church. Together, they made their home in Jamestown where she began her career in the OB department at Jamestown Hospital. Her dedication to caring for others continued throughout her professional life, later leading her to Dakota Clinic in Jamestown. Her work was an extension of her compassionate spirit, and she touched many lives until her retirement in 2009. 

She filled her days with many loves; her family above all, but also the quiet joys of gardening, flowers, sewing, crafts, and scrap booking. She had a special gift of preserving memories, and spent countless hours gathering family history. Darlene started her day at the Depot Cafe nearly every morning. It was a simple tradition, but one she shared with her children, friends, and eventually grandchildren. Not only were Depot mornings filled with love and laughter, but an abundance of Mickey Mouse shaped pancakes. 

Darlene passed away peacefully on March 23rd 2026 at Eventide in Jamestown, surrounded by the love of her family. She leaves behind her husband Chuck, her sons; Cory (Deb) Struble and Dave (Leslie) Struble, two sisters; Linda (Gary) Kraft and Roberta (Karl) Wilhelm, six grandchildren; Jayden (Darsh), Allie, Jonah, Grace, Evyn, and Owen, and seven nieces and nephews. She has been reunited with her parents, her daughter, Tiffiney Dick, and her sister, Mary Lee Guffy.

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In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Jamestown Regional Medical Center Foundations, specifically to the OB ward.

Memorial Service- 3:30 PM Saturday, March 28, 2026 at Haut Funeral Home in Jamestown, ND, with Pastor Kristi Weber, officiating.

Interment- Highland Home Cemetery, Jamestown, ND (at a later date).





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Hope’s Corner: Hope Springs Eternal

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Hope’s Corner: Hope Springs Eternal


I spent the first day of spring, last Friday, weeding my back yard flower beds. Let that sink in, because this is North Dakota. We have April showers in May, and May flowers in June. We sometimes have snow in June, too. Weeding my tulips in March is a first.

The tulips have been up for a couple of weeks in my south-facing gardens. The six inches of snow last weekend did not deter their enthusiasm. According to the South Dakota State University Extension Service, tulips close to our shared border usually begin to appear in late March and early April. Mine are early risers this year. I blame the switch to Daylight Saving Time.

My yarrow and hollyhocks have been green and growing for four weeks. The yarrow was a little miffed at the one subzero night a week or so ago, but the hollyhocks merely flattened out and took it in stride. Our friends at the South Dakota Extension Service assure me both of those plant varieties normally sprout in mid-May. Maybe the frequent solar storms and northern lights displays have affected them.

Shortly after that subzero stretch in February, which Katie the Wonder Puppy and I called The Degrees of Despair, the pussywillow began to bud. I cut my first bouquet this past Friday the 13th. And did you know the blossoms are called catkins?

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That shrub is only a couple weeks early in blooming. Obviously, like all cats, my pussywillow is indifferent to solar storms, the northern lights, and Daylight Saving Time. When its feet get warm enough, it stretches out and basks in the sun. Wild catnip has, however, sprouted near the pussywillow’s trunk. I suspect some deep-rooted drug dependency at work there.

But, weeds? There is wild horseradish marching across my tastefully scattered scoria chips. There is quackgrass strangling daylilies and yarrow. There are weeds of unknown name towering over my tulips. Actually, I have a name for those weeds, but that name is best kept to myself.

I pulled out one quackgrass clump, and I am pretty sure its far end stretched all the way to Gladstone. It was like pulling one of those string strips from the top of a fifty-pound sack of sunflower seeds. Not that I regularly buy fifty-pound bags of sunflower seeds for the neighborhood birds, or anything.

I was feeling pretty smug last Saturday after I finished all my weeding. I figured I would need to start mowing in a few more days. I began looking at seed catalogs and dreaming of Big Boy tomato plants.

Late Saturday evening Katie and I went outside to take in the fresh air. It was snowing. Gotta love North Dakota.

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Jackie Hope is the longest running Dickinson Press contributor and columnist. Hope’s Corner is a weekly humorous column with a message of hope.





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