Author

Joshua Haiar

Joshua Haiar

Joshua Haiar is a reporter based in Sioux Falls. Born and raised in Mitchell, he joined the Navy as a public affairs specialist after high school and then earned a degree from the University of South Dakota. Prior to joining South Dakota Searchlight, Joshua worked for five years as a multimedia specialist and journalist with South Dakota Public Broadcasting.

Public Utilities Commissioner Kristie Fiegen participates in a hearing July 25, 2023, in Fort Pierre on a permit application for the proposed Heartland Greenway carbon dioxide pipeline. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Errors and missing info highlighted as carbon pipeline hearing continues

By: - August 3, 2023

Public utilities commissioners denied a motion to withhold a permit for a liquid carbon dioxide pipeline Thursday, but they acknowledged lacking some useful information from the company applying to build it. It was the seventh day of a hearing at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre, with more days to come.  Navigator CO2 […]

The Public Utilities Commission conducts a hearing July 25, 2023, at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre on the permit application for the proposed Heartland Greenway carbon dioxide pipeline. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Contrasting safety views aired on sixth day of carbon pipeline permit hearing

By: - August 2, 2023

Opposing sides debated the safety of the proposed Heartland Greenway pipeline Wednesday during the sixth day of a permit hearing at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre.  Navigator CO2’s application to construct a pipeline carrying compressed carbon dioxide has some people worried about a leak. The project includes “a laundry list of techniques” […]

Rep. Karla Lems, R-Canton, sifts through papers regarding the carbon capture pipeline projects proposed to cross her land. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Landowners plead for their right to keep carbon pipeline off their land

By: - August 1, 2023

Landowners urged the state Public Utilities Commission on Tuesday to help them prevent a liquid carbon dioxide pipeline from crossing their land. It was the fifth day of a hearing at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre on Navigator CO2’s application for a permit to construct the Heartland Greenway pipeline. It was also […]

Stephen Lee, executive vice president of engineering and construction for Navigator CO2, testifies about the proposed Heartland Greenway pipeline on July 27, 2023, during a hearing at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Crop damage payouts debated as pipeline hearing continues

By: - July 31, 2023

A company touted its plan to reimburse crop damages caused by the installation of its proposed carbon capture pipeline, and an opposing attorney criticized the plan Monday during the fourth day of a permit hearing before state regulators at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre. Meanwhile, an expert witness for the company testified […]

John Abraham, a professor at the University of St. Thomas, prepares to offer expert testimony July 27, 2023, in Fort Pierre during a Public Utilities Commission hearing on a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Secret maps and toxic plumes dominate third day of pipeline testimony

By: - July 27, 2023

FORT PIERRE – The “sensitive sites” potentially impacted by a carbon capture pipeline will remain confidential, for now. Meanwhile, modeling used to assess the impacts of a leak or rupture came under scrutiny Thursday during the third day of a permit hearing before state regulators at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center. Stephen Lee is the […]

Jared McEntaffer, CEO of Dakota Institute, testifies during a hearing July 26, 2023, in Fort Pierre on the permit sought by Navigator CO2 for a carbon capture pipeline. McEntaffer conducted an economic impact study on the project. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Economic projections questioned during second day of carbon pipeline hearing

By: - July 26, 2023

FORT PIERRE — The economic benefits of a proposed carbon capture pipeline came under scrutiny Wednesday during the second day of a permit hearing before state regulators at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center. The project would create about 430 jobs in South Dakota during the construction phase, 20 jobs during operation, and $1.3 million in sales […]

The Public Utilities Commission conducts a hearing July 25, 2023, at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center in Fort Pierre on the permit application for the proposed Heartland Greenway carbon dioxide pipeline. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Carbon pipeline permit hearing kicks off with clashes on multiple fronts

By: - July 25, 2023

FORT PIERRE — A multi-day permit hearing for a proposed carbon capture pipeline got off to a tense start Tuesday at the Casey Tibbs Rodeo Center as participants clashed over the rules of procedure and aspects of the project including land access, county-level regulations, safety and data quality. Brian Jorde, the attorney for some affected […]

Grass waves in the western South Dakota wind. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

South Dakota ranks third in federal grassland conservation sign-ups

By: - July 22, 2023

Only two states enrolled more land than South Dakota in the most recent sign-up period for a federal grassland conservation program. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Grassland Conservation Reserve Program pays farmers to convert or keep environmentally sensitive agricultural land as grassland for 10 to 15 years. Unlike the USDA’s standard Conservation Reserve Program, the […]

An aerial view from a drone shows a combine being used to harvest the soybeans in a field at the Bardole & Sons farm on Oct. 14, 2019, in Rippey, Iowa. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

State has one record of acting on 44-year-old foreign ag land law

By: - July 21, 2023

In the late 1970s, amid national worry that foreigners might be buying up agricultural land and driving up the price, South Dakota lawmakers decided to act. They passed a law limiting foreign ownership of farm and ranch land to 160 acres. Now, 44 years later, as the issue of foreign ownership is back in the […]

An educator works with students at Cleveland Elementary School. (Courtesy of Sioux Falls School District)

Gap grows between targeted and actual teacher pay

By: - July 17, 2023

Schools are lagging the state’s target pay for teachers, and the gap is growing, according to data shared with a state board in Pierre. That’s despite the 2016 Legislature’s efforts to address the problem by increasing the state’s sales tax by half a percentage point. This year, the Legislature reduced the state sales tax by […]

Governor Kristi Noem speaks July 12, 2023, during a press conference at a Lewis Drug pharmacy in Sioux Falls. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

Noem pledges action to alleviate prescription drug shortages

By: - July 12, 2023

SIOUX FALLS — Governor Kristi Noem announced Wednesday the state will create additional stockpiles of prescription drugs to combat shortages.  The Department of Health already has an emergency stockpile of antibiotics in Sioux Falls and Rapid City. Noem is expanding that program to five additional cities – Aberdeen, Hot Springs, Mobridge, Pierre and Yankton. And […]

(Getty Images)

Regulators to begin review of NorthWestern Energy’s proposed 16% rate increase

By: - July 11, 2023

A company that provides electricity to 64,680 South Dakota customers wants to raise its rates by about 16%. South Dakota’s Public Utilities Commission voted Tuesday to give itself six months to study the rate proposal. It would be a jump of $19.14 per month on an average residential customer’s bill, although the increase would affect […]