Latest news with #NorthDakota
CBS News
7 hours ago
- General
- CBS News
Ground squirrels are taking over Minot, North Dakota, possibly outnumbering city's human population
The Richardson's ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long and is native to the northern Plains. The little creature is also a ferocious tunneler, and it's exasperating the people of Minot, North Dakota, where it's burrowing everywhere from vacant lots to the middle of town, and growing more plentiful over the past two decades. Now North Dakota's fourth-largest city is fighting back, but even the pest control guy leading the charge acknowledges that it will be difficult to turn the tide against the rodent. Joshua Herman said fighting the squirrels is akin to "one guy standing against a massive storm." "If I'm trapping but my neighbor isn't, well then, we're really not going to get anywhere with it, long-term," Herman said. Ground squirrels have been an issue in Minot, a city of nearly 50,000 people, for at least 20 years, but the problem has dramatically worsened in the last few years, said Minot Street Department Superintendent Kevin Braaten. It's unclear how many of the squirrels live in Minot but it likely nears or even exceeds the city's population. "Gosh, there's got to be tens of thousands of them in the area," Herman said. Officials in the city, a green spot along the winding Souris River surrounded by farmland and grassy prairie, know they can't get rid of the squirrels, but hope to simply get the rodent numbers down. "I don't see the population ever going to zero," Braaten said. "I mean, it's almost impossible by the numbers that we have." Put another way, Minot won't be able to rid itself of the squirrels because the animals have lived on the prairie for centuries. Outside of town, predators like coyotes, badgers, owls and even snakes love to dine on the squirrels. But in residential neighborhoods and even downtown, where few of their predators live, the rodents can roam pretty freely. Greg Gullickson, an outreach biologist with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, adds that the squirrels now have fewer grassland areas available to them and like the mowed spots they find in town. Female squirrels typically give birth to litters of about six babies a year, so it's easy to see how their numbers can quickly soar. Herman said he kills 3,500 to 5,000 of them a year, primarily by putting snares and carbon monoxide into the holes, and using an air rifle. "I've had calls downtown, calls in the mall, along the highways, here at the airport — really every part of the city I've done trapping for ground squirrels here in Minot," Herman said as he checked his traps along an apartment building and shoveled dirt over holes. Herman says they damage driveways, sidewalks and lawns; create tripping hazards with their holes and can harbor disease from fleas. Along an apartment building, the squirrels had dug under a concrete slab and against the foundation. Nearby in a vacant lot, the rodents popped in and out of holes. Ground squirrels near Pashone Grandson's ground-level apartment dig holes near her door and eat her plants. One squirrel even got around her baby gate at the door and into her daughter's clothes in her bedroom. "It was a little scary. You don't know what disease they carry. They're dirty. I have a young daughter ... I didn't know if it was going to bite her," Grandson said. North of town, Minot Air Force Base, which houses bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles, has fought the ground squirrels for years. Earlier this month, the base said it had trapped more than 800 "dak-rats," a base name for the rodents. Base officials declined to comment on the squirrels. Jared Edwards, facilities director for Minot Public Schools, which has three schools on the base, said residential areas of the base and runways are overrun by ground squirrels. He called it "a continuous battle for them for the last 75 years since the base has been there." "I'm not going to exaggerate: They're by the millions out there," Edwards said. In town, three school properties have large populations of ground squirrels, he said. Last year, the school system began using snares, and for years before that had used poison. "It's something you have to keep up with. It is Mother Nature," Edwards said, adding that they've probably been in the area since homesteaders came through. Still, not everyone sees the squirrels as a pest. Some find the critters cute and fuzzy. Herman said people have sabotaged, stolen or thrown out his traps. They occasionally confront him when he shoots at ground squirrels with an air rifle, scolding him for hurting the wildlife, he said. "They get that cute association, and they are, you know, adorable, but they're a vermin and a pest and dangerous when they are allowed to proliferate," Herman said.
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- General
- The Guardian
‘There's got to be tens of thousands': ground squirrels overrun North Dakota city
The Richardson's ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long and is native to the northern Plains. The little creature also is a ferocious tunneler, and it's exasperating the people of Minot, North Dakota, where it's burrowing everywhere from vacant lots to the middle of town, and growing more plentiful over the past two decades. Now North Dakota's fourth-largest city is fighting back, but even the pest control guy leading the charge acknowledges that it will be difficult to turn the tide against the rodent. Joshua Herman said fighting the squirrels is akin to 'one guy standing against a massive storm'. 'If I'm trapping but my neighbor isn't, well then, we're really not going to get anywhere with it, long-term,' Herman said. Ground squirrels have been an issue in Minot, a city of nearly 50,000 people, for at least 20 years, but the problem has dramatically worsened in the last few years, said Minot Street Department Superintendent Kevin Braaten. It's unclear how many of the squirrels live in Minot but it likely nears or even exceeds the city's population. 'Gosh, there's got to be tens of thousands of them in the area,' Herman said. Officials in the city, a green spot along the winding Souris River surrounded by farmland and grassy prairie, know they can't get rid of the squirrels, but hope to simply get the rodent numbers down. 'I don't see the population ever going to zero,' Braaten said. 'I mean, it's almost impossible by the numbers that we have.' Put another way, Minot won't be able to rid itself of the squirrels because the animals have lived on the prairie for centuries. Outside of town, predators like coyotes, badgers, owls and even snakes love to dine on the squirrels. But in residential neighborhoods and even downtown, where few of their predators live, the rodents can roam pretty freely. Greg Gullickson, an outreach biologist with the North Dakota game and fish department, adds that the squirrels now have fewer grassland areas available to them and like the mowed spots they find in town. Female squirrels typically give birth to litters of about six babies a year, so it's easy to see how their numbers can quickly soar. Herman said he kills 3,500 to 5,000 of them a year, primarily by putting snares and carbon monoxide into the holes, and using an air rifle. 'I've had calls downtown, calls in the mall, along the highways, here at the airport – really every part of the city I've done trapping for ground squirrels here in Minot,' Herman said as he checked his traps along an apartment building and shoveled dirt over holes. Herman says they damage driveways, sidewalks and lawns; create tripping hazards with their holes and can harbor disease from fleas. Along an apartment building, the squirrels had dug under a concrete slab and against the foundation. Nearby in a vacant lot, the rodents popped in and out of holes. Ground squirrels near Pashone Grandson's ground-level apartment dig holes near her door and eat her plants. One squirrel even got around her baby gate at the door and into her daughter's clothes in her bedroom. 'It was a little scary. You don't know what disease they carry. They're dirty. I have a young daughter ... I didn't know if it was going to bite her,' Grandson said. North of town, Minot Air Force Base, which houses bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles, has fought the ground squirrels for years. Earlier this month, the base said it had trapped more than 800 'dak-rats,' a base name for the rodents. Base officials declined to comment on the squirrels. Jared Edwards, facilities director for Minot Public Schools, which has three schools on the base, said residential areas of the base and runways are overrun by ground squirrels. He called it 'a continuous battle for them for the last 75 years since the base has been there.' 'I'm not going to exaggerate: they're by the millions out there,' Edwards said. In town, three school properties have large populations of ground squirrels, he said. Last year, the school system began using snares, and for years before that had used poison. 'It's something you have to keep up with. It is Mother Nature,' Edwards said, adding that they've probably been in the area since homesteaders came through. Still, not everyone sees the squirrels as a pest. Some find the critters cute and fuzzy. Herman said people have sabotaged, stolen or thrown out his traps. They occasionally confront him when he shoots at ground squirrels with an air rifle, scolding him for hurting the wildlife, he said. 'They get that cute association, and they are, you know, adorable, but they're a vermin and a pest and dangerous when they are allowed to proliferate,' Herman said.
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Cory Booker pitches bill to allow lawsuits against pesticide makers over ‘toxic products'
Cory Booker on Thursday introduced legislation that would create a federal 'right of action', allowing people to sue pesticide makers such as Bayer and Syngenta, and others, for allegedly causing health issues such as cancer and Parkinson's disease. The Pesticide Injury Accountability Act would 'ensure that pesticide manufacturers can be held responsible for the harm caused by their toxic products', according to a summary of the bill. The legislation would be amended to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act of 1972 (FIFRA). If passed, the law would turn the tables on efforts by Bayer and a coalition of agricultural organizations as they push for state-by-state legislation blocking individuals from being able to file lawsuits accusing the companies of failing to warn of the risks of their products. The industry has also been pushing for federal preemptive protections against litigation. So far, two states – Georgia and North Dakota – have passed what critics call 'liability shield' laws. The laws essentially declare that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has oversight of pesticide labeling and state laws cannot permit companies to be held liable for failing to go beyond what the EPA requires in warning customers of potential risks. Booker's proposed law would not invalidate the state laws, but would give individuals an alternative - the right to bring their injury claims in federal courts if they can't bring them in state courts. 'Rather than providing a liability shield so that foreign corporations are allowed to poison the American people, Congress should instead … ensure that these chemical companies can be held accountable in federal court for the harm caused by their toxic products,' Booker said in a statement accompanying the announcement of the bill. So far, 17 environmental, public health and consumer groups have endorsed the measure, including leaders in the Make America Health Again (Maha) movement. Zen Honeycutt, founder of Moms Across America and a supporter of Booker's legislation, said it is 'unconscionable that corporations are pushing our elected officials to manipulate laws that protect their profits over the health and safety of Americans'. She noted that many pesticides used widely in the US are banned in other countries because of their health risks. The summary of the bill names both Germany-based Bayer and the Chinese-owned Syngenta as key targets and says they and others are seeking 'liability shields because they know the harm their products have already caused'. Bayer bought Monsanto in 2018 and inherited a mass of lawsuits involving close to 200,000 plaintiffs in the United States alone, all alleging that the company should have warned users that its glyphosate-based weed killing products, such as the popular Roundup brand, could cause cancer. The company has already paid out billions of dollars in settlements and jury awards, but still faces roughly 67,000 lawsuits. Likewise, Syngenta is facing several thousand lawsuits from people alleging that its paraquat weed killing products cause Parkinson's disease and that Syngenta should have warned users of evidence that chronic exposure could cause the incurable brain disease. The company has so far paid out well over $100m to settle cases before they go to trial, and is attempting to solidify a broad settlement of the majority of the cases. Bayer and its allies argue that their pesticide products, which are widely used in farming, are not only safe but are necessary for food production. Costly lawsuits jeopardize the availability of pesticides for agriculture, they say. Bayer did not respond to a request for comment on Booker's proposed legislation. Syngenta said Booker's bill 'targets American food security' and that farmers do not deserve an 'attack on the products they rely on'. The company said American agriculture is 'highly regulated, productive and safe', and that its paraquat products specifically, have not been shown to cause Parkinson's disease. This story is co-published with the New Lede, a journalism project of the Environmental Working Group
National Post
10 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
LibertyStream Announces Successful Field Trial in North Dakota's Bakken Region
Article content Expansion into North Dakota's Bakken Basin Reinforces Company's Leadership in U.S. Critical Mineral Supply Article content CALGARY, Alberta — LibertyStream Infrastructure Partners Inc. (TSXV: LIB | OTCQB: VLTLF | FSE: I2D) (' LibertyStream ' or the ' Company ') is pleased to announce a successful field trial of its proprietary mobile Direct Lithium Extraction ('DLE') unit (the ' Field Unit ') in North Dakota's Bakken region (the ' Field Trial '). This initiative, in collaboration with Wellspring Hydro ('Wellspring'), is supported by a combined US$2.5 million in funding facilitated through the North Dakota Industrial Commission's Clean Sustainable Energy Authority and Renewable Energy Program. Article content 'Congratulations to LibertyStream and Wellspring on achieving a major milestone: successfully extracting lithium from produced water right here in North Dakota. This innovative approach transforms an oilfield by-product into a valuable resource for clean energy—using existing infrastructure, off-the-shelf equipment, and real-time field testing,' Article content commented Rich Garman, Director of Development and Finance at the North Dakota Department of Commerce. Article content 'We're proud to have supported this project through the Renewable Energy Council, the Clean Sustainable Energy Authority, and the North Dakota Development Fund. This is a strong example of how North Dakota's pro-innovation and resource-smart mindset is helping lead the way in critical mineral production.' Article content North Dakota Field Trial Article content The purpose of the Field Trial was to compare the performance and efficacy of the Field Unit against previously validated pilot trials performed at LibertyStream's Research and Development Centre in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The results from the Field Trial confirmed the performance of the Field Unit against the performance at the Research and Development Centre by achieving an average 96% lithium extraction rate from Bakken‑region oil‑field brine. The field trial was conducted at Compass Energy System's (' Compass ') Blue Marlin salt-water-disposal facility (' SWD ') in North Dakota. Article content ' Our team designed the Field Unit to drive system performance while maintaining both flexibility and portability,' said Dr. John McEwen, Inventor and Chief Technology Officer at LibertyStream. 'The North Dakota Field Trial sets the stage for future trials, further advancing our technology and readiness for commercial deployment.' Article content Key Highlights of the Field Trial include Article content The Field Trial used LibertyStream's proprietary DLE Technology and Process (the ' Technology ') providing further validation of the robustness of the Technology to process oil-field brine from multiple oil fields across America with consistent results; Lithium‑recovery results matched those from the Calgary R&D facility, with the Field Unit averaging a 96% lithium extraction rate on brine sourced from Compass Blue Marlin SWD; The average lithium content of the processed brine at the site was 75 mg/L; Average volume per DLE cycle was 300 gallons over the Field Trial period; and More than 1,300 DLE cycles have now been completed across six months of U.S. field operations, underscoring scalability. Article content Strategic Significance: North American Lithium Leadership Article content LibertyStream has conducted field operations in North America's two most prolific onshore oil-producing basins—the Permian in Texas and New Mexico, and the Bakken in North Dakota. Together, these basins represent over 60% of total U.S. onshore oil output, providing significant opportunities for lithium extraction from extensive lithium-rich produced water volumes. Article content The Permian Basin generates approximately 19 million barrels per day of produced water at lithium concentrations averaging around 30 ppm, translating to a conservative 170,000 tonnes per annum ('tpa') of potential LCE. Article content The Williston Basin Bakken production ranges from 1.6 million to 2 million barrels of produced water per day, suggesting potential production of ~50 000 tpa LCE. Article content CEO Commentary: Article content 'The North Dakota Field Trial provides further supporting evidence of the robustness of the Technology we have developed at LibertyStream. This milestone builds on six months of intensive operations in Texas, during which the company completed over 1,300 DLE runs, demonstrating robust and scalable technology readiness. These trials are instrumental to our strategy and showcase the continued progress toward transforming lithium extraction in a responsible, capital-light and high-efficiency manner as we transition to commercial operations in America.' Article content — Alex Wylie, President & CEO of LibertyStream Infrastructure Partners Qualified Person Scientific and technical information contained in this press release has been reviewed and approved by Doug Ashton, and Meghan Klein, of Sproule Associates Limited, each of whom are qualified persons within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ('NI 43-101'). Mr. Ashton and Ms. Klein consent to the inclusion of the data in the form and context in which it appears. Article content About LibertyStream Infrastructure Partners Article content LibertyStream is a lithium development and technology company aiming to be one of North America's first commercial producers of lithium carbonates from oilfield brine. Our strategy is to generate value for shareholders by leveraging management's hydrocarbon experience to deploy our proprietary DLE technology directly into existing oil and gas infrastructure, thereby reducing capital costs, lowering risks and supporting the world's clean energy transition. With four differentiating pillars, and a proprietary Direct Lithium Extraction (' DLE ') technology and process, LibertyStream's innovative approach to development is focused on generating the highest lithium recoveries with lowest costs, positioning us for future commercialization. We are committed to operating efficiently and with transparency across all areas of the business staying sharply focused on creating long-term, sustainable shareholder value. Investors and/or other interested parties may sign up for updates about the Company's continued progress on its website: Article content Forward Looking Statements Article content This news release includes certain 'forward-looking statements' and 'forward-looking information' within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. When used in this news release, the words 'anticipate', 'believe', 'estimate', 'expect', 'target', 'plan', 'forecast', 'may', 'will', 'would', 'could', 'schedule' and similar words or expressions, identify forward-looking statements or information. Statements, other than statements of historical fact, may constitute forward-looking information and include, without limitation, information with respect to the terms of the operational milestone, Volume Scale-up. Extraction Time Improvements and Continuous Processing vs Batch Processing, the deployment of the Field Unit in the Permian Basin, the production of battery grade lithium by the Field Unit, and the commercial production of lithium from oilfield brine. With respect to the forward-looking information contained in this press release, the Company has made numerous assumptions. While the Company considers these assumptions to be reasonable, these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies and may prove to be incorrect. Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information contained herein including those known risk factors outlined in the Company's annual information form for the year ended June 30, 2024 and (final) short form base shelf prospectus dated July 20, 2023. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as required by law. Article content Article content Article content Article content Article content Contacts Article content
Al Arabiya
12 hours ago
- General
- Al Arabiya
Ground squirrels are taking over a North Dakota city and officials are not amused
The Richardson's ground squirrel weighs less than a pound, is about a foot long, and is native to the northern Plains. The little creature also is a ferocious tunneler, and it's exasperating the people of Minot, North Dakota, where it's burrowing everywhere from vacant lots to the middle of town and growing more plentiful over the past two decades. Now North Dakota's fourth-largest city is fighting back, but even the pest control guy leading the charge acknowledges that it will be difficult to turn the tide against the rodent. An uphill battle, Joshua Herman said fighting the squirrels is akin to one guy standing against a massive storm. 'If I'm trapping but my neighbor isn't, well, then we're really not going to get anywhere with it long-term,' Herman said. Ground squirrels have been an issue in Minot, a city of nearly 50,000 people, for at least 20 years, but the problem has dramatically worsened in the last few years, said Minot Street Department Superintendent Kevin Braaten. It's unclear how many of the squirrels live in Minot, but it likely nears or even exceeds the city's population. 'Gosh, there's got to be tens of thousands of them in the area,' Herman said. Officials in the city, a green spot along the winding Souris River surrounded by farmland and grassy prairie, know they can't get rid of the squirrels but hope to simply get the rodent numbers down. 'I don't see the population ever going to zero,' Braaten said. 'I mean, it's almost impossible by the numbers that we have.' Put another way, Minot won't be able to rid itself of the squirrels because the animals have lived on the prairie for centuries. Outside of town, predators like coyotes, badgers, owls, and even snakes love to dine on the squirrels. But in residential neighborhoods and even downtown, where few of their predators live, the rodents can roam pretty freely. Greg Gullickson, an outreach biologist with the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, adds that the squirrels now have fewer grassland areas available to them and like the mowed spots they find in town. No land is safe. Female squirrels typically give birth to litters of about six babies a year, so it's easy to see how their numbers can quickly soar. Herman said he kills 3,500 to 5,000 of them a year, primarily by putting snares and carbon monoxide into the holes and using an air rifle. 'I've had calls downtown, calls in the mall, along the highways, here at the airport – really every part of the city I've done trapping for ground squirrels here in Minot,' Herman said as he checked his traps along an apartment building and shoveled dirt over holes. Herman says they damage driveways, sidewalks, and lawns, create tripping hazards with their holes, and can harbor disease from fleas. Along an apartment building, the squirrels had dug under a concrete slab and against the foundation. Nearby in a vacant lot, the rodents popped in and out of holes. Ground squirrels near Pashone Grandson's ground-level apartment dig holes near her door and eat her plants. One squirrel even got around her baby gate at the door and into her daughter's clothes in her bedroom. 'It was a little scary. You don't know what disease they carry. They're dirty. I have a young daughter… I didn't know if it was going to bite her,' Grandson said. North of town, Minot Air Force Base, which houses bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles, has fought the ground squirrels for years. Earlier this month, the base said it had trapped more than 800 dak-rats, a base name for the rodents. Base officials declined to comment on the squirrels. Jared Edwards, facilities director for Minot Public Schools, which has three schools on the base, said residential areas of the base and runways are overrun by ground squirrels. He called it a continuous battle for them for the last 75 years since the base has been there. 'I'm not going to exaggerate: They're by the millions out there,' Edwards said. In town, three school properties have large populations of ground squirrels, he said. Last year, the school system began using snares and, for years before that, had used poison. 'It's something you have to keep up with. It is Mother Nature,' Edwards said, adding that they've probably been in the area since homesteaders came through. Still, not everyone sees the squirrels as a pest. Some find the critters cute and fuzzy. Herman said people have sabotaged, stolen, or thrown out his traps. They occasionally confront him when he shoots at ground squirrels with an air rifle, scolding him for hurting the wildlife, he said. 'They get that cute association, and they are, you know, adorable, but they're a vermin and a pest and dangerous when they are allowed to proliferate,' Herman said.
