Rural

Total 188 Posts
Half of the state's residents live outside of Sioux Falls and Rapid City, and South Dakota News Watch is the only news organizations with a full-time reporter dedicated to covering those regions with stories that highlight its people.

Wildlife officials express strong stances for and against S.D. pheasant predator bounty program

A former South Dakota Game, Fish and Park leader with vast experience in wildlife management has expressed strong disagreement with current GFP leadership on whether a state predator bounty program protects young pheasants or is the right way to get youths involved in outdoor activities. In an online panel discussion

South Dakota Matters: The Future of Pheasants — News Watch to host online panel discussion

Join South Dakota News Watch Content Director Bart Pfankuch as he hosts a discussion among four top wildlife management experts from South Dakota regarding pheasant management and the controversial Nest Predator Bounty Program. The event will be held live on Facebook at 7:30 p.m. Central, 6:30 p.

Viability of rural ambulance services in S.D. at risk due to staffing and funding shortages

Rural ambulance services in South Dakota are having an increasingly hard time recruiting volunteers and generating revenues, putting the stability of the services at risk and making it more likely that rural residents will endure longer response times in emergencies or possibly lose ambulance service altogether. While most larger cities

Special report part 2: Robotic milking is latest high-tech tool on SD dairy farms

LAKE NORDEN, S.D. – Dairy farmer Rodney Elliott stands in a small room where part of his $12 million robotic milking system is doing its job. The robotic system is located inside a huge new barn on Elliott’s farm northeast of Lake Norden and is one of only a

Special report part 3: Take a tour of a $12 million robotic dairy in South Dakota

LAKE NORDEN, S.D. – The Drumgoon Dairy in Lake Norden is one of only a handful of dairies in the state to use a fully robotic milking system. Here are some basics on the operation run by Rodney Elliott, a native of Northern Ireland who has run one of South

Special report part 1: SD dairy industry growing fast to meet needs of cheesemakers

South Dakota dairy producers have undergone a rapid expansion in recent years to meet the milk needs of the state’s growing cheesemaking industry, bringing a burst of economic prosperity to farm families and farming communities throughout the eastern half of the state. Milk production in South Dakota rose by

Proposed health plan for SD farmers would fall outside state and federal regulations

South Dakota lawmakers have passed a bill that would allow agricultural industry groups to develop their own health-benefit plans that would be outside the purview and regulation of the state Division of Insurance and which would sidestep some federal consumer protections. The measure is being pushed by the South Dakota
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