South Dakota
Wild horses to remain in North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park, lawmaker says
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — Wild horses will stay in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park amid fears from advocates that park officials would remove the beloved animals from the rugged Badlands landscape, a key lawmaker said Thursday.
Republican U.S. Sen. John Hoeven said he has secured a commitment from the National Park Service to maintain the park’s roughly 200 horses. His office said the Park Service will abandon its proposed removal of the horses under an environmental review process begun in 2022.
“This will allow for a healthy herd of wild horses to be maintained at the park, managed in a way to support genetic diversity among the herd and preserve the park’s natural resources,” Hoeven’s office said in a statement.
Park visitors, much to their delight, often encounter the horses while driving or hiking in the rolling, colorful Badlands where a young, future President Theodore Roosevelt hunted and ranched in the 1880s.
The horses roam the park’s South Unit near the Western tourist town of Medora. In 2022, park officials began the process of crafting a “livestock plan” for the horses as well as about nine longhorn cattle in the park’s North Unit near Watford City. Park officials have said that process aligned with policies to remove non-native species when they pose a potential risk to resources.
“The horse herd in the South Unit, particularly at higher herd sizes, has the potential to damage fences used for wildlife management, trample or overgraze vegetation used by native wildlife species, contribute to erosion and soil-related impacts … and compete for food and water resources,” according to a Park Service environmental assessment from September 2023.
Proposals included removing the horses quickly or gradually or taking no action. Park Superintendent Angie Richman has said the horses, even if they ultimately stay, would still have to be reduced to 35-60 animals under a 1978 environmental assessment. It wasn’t immediately clear how Hoeven’s announcement affects the future number of horses or the longhorns.
Thousands of people made public comments during the Park Service review, the vast majority of them in support of keeping the horses. North Dakota’s Republican-controlled Legislature made its support official in a resolution last year. Gov. Doug Burgum offered state help to maintain the horses.
Hoeven’s announcement comes after Congress passed and President Joe Biden recently signed an appropriations bill with a provision from Hoeven strongly recommending the Park Service maintain the horses. The legislation signaled that funding to remove the horses might be denied.
The horses descend from those of Native American tribes and area ranches and from domestic stallions introduced to the park in the late 20th century, according to Castle McLaughlin, who researched the horses as a graduate student while working for the Park Service in North Dakota in the 1980s.
The annual South Dakota Department of Transportation snowplow naming contest is back.
Officials say it’s a chance to give a personal flair to the plows that keep the state’s roads clear every winter.
Anyone can submit a name online. DOT staff choose one winner for each of its 12 geographic districts.
Some past winning names include Thaw Enforcement, Frost and the Flurrious and Plowabunga.
This is the sixth year the state has held the naming contest. Officials say the state receives an average of around 700 submissions each year.
“Each winter, South Dakotans place their trust in the SDDOT to keep our state highways open. From families traveling statewide for recreational purposes to truck drivers transporting goods that fuel our economy, everyone depends on a reliable and safe public transportation system,” said Transportation Secretary Joel Jundt. “Last winter, SDDOT introduced a new text notification service that provides subscribers with direct updates for any winter-related Interstate closure. This free service builds upon our SD511 system, making it even easier for drivers to access current information seamlessly.”
The contest is open through Dec. 12.
As part of the contest, the DOT also created snowplow and winter driving awareness coloring sheets, crossword puzzles and word finds for families and classrooms. New materials are available for download on the contest page.
South Dakota
The Salvation Army of Aberdeen, South Dakota, starts Red Bucket campaign in mid-November
The Salvation Army’s relationship to Christmastime goes back more than a century. This holiday season, the charitable organization will be out in Hub City beginning on Nov. 14, where residents can see the familiar red kettle street campaign around the area.
Last year, the Salvation Army of Aberdeen raised nearly $129,000 during several hundred hours of volunteer work. Captain Joseph Hixenbaugh says the group has new goals for 2025 and is aiming to raise more than $121,000 and hopes for about 1,400 cumulative hours of volunteering.
These funds help the Salvation Army continue to provide essential services to families and individuals in need across the local community during the season of giving, as well as beyond.
Some of the important items the Salvation Army provides with the money received include food boxes, backpacks, lodging, prescriptions, transportation, rent and utility assistance. This year, its leadership told the Aberdeen News the local Salvation Army seeks “food and volunteers to fill the many hours of time this Christmas.”
Hixenbaugh and his wife, Kendra, are new administrators for the Salvation Army of Aberdeen. They began here this autumn after previously working in Indiana.
Hixenbaugh says it is simple to become a volunteer. Interested parties can go to registertoring.com and type in the zip code 57401.
As a whole, the Salvation Army plans to bring hope and joy to those who may be struggling during the upcoming holiday season. The bell ringing around Hub City concludes on Christmas Eve.
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