As summer begins, the spotlight will be on the dunes sagebrush lizard (will it get an endangered listing or not?), former EPA regional head Al Armendariz (who’s testifying in Washington) — and, of course, the perpetual question of whether the electric grid has enough juice.
Kate Galbraith
Kate Galbraith covered energy and environment for the Tribune from 2010 to 2013. Previously she reported on clean energy for The New York Times from 2008 to 2009, serving as the lead writer for the Times' Green blog. She began her career at The Economist in 2000 and spent 2005 to 2007 in Austin as the magazine's Southwest correspondent. A Nieman fellow in journalism at Harvard University from 2007 to 2008, she has an undergraduate degree in English from Harvard and a master's degree from the London School of Economics. She is co-author of “The Great Texas Wind Rush,” a book about how the oil and gas state won the race to wind power.
Posted in
Energy
Updated: Combs, Oil Groups Applaud Decision to Keep Lizard Off Endangered List
A federal decision not to list the dunes sagebrush lizard — whose habitat includes the West Texas oilfields — as threatened or endangered set off a round of cheering by state officials and oil groups. But some environmentalists fear for the lizard’s future.
Posted in
Energy
On Water Conservation, Seeing Room to Improve
As Texas recovers from the severe drought of the last two years, water experts say that conservation is the easiest way to make sure the state has enough water for future growth. But conservation doesn’t always come naturally.
Posted in
Energy
Texas Gets Creative With Plans for Recycling Water
Later this year, a plant in Big Spring will become the state’s first facility to process wastewater and send it back into the drinking water system. This is the ultimate use of “reclaimed water” — a source crucial to Texas’ future.
Posted in
Energy
Slideshow: A New Kind of Water Plant
The ultimate use of sewage water is converting it into drinking water — and a plant in the West Texas town of Big Spring will do exactly that when it begins operations at the end of the year. This is a slideshow of the plant, currently under construction.
Posted in
Energy
Amid Scramble for Water, a Push for Desalination
Desalination has become a buzzword in water discussions around the state, amid concerns over future supplies. But tapping salty aquifers, or even seawater from the Gulf of Mexico, carries costs.
Posted in
Energy
In Era of Drought, Texas Cities Boost Water Rates
The drought has pushed Texas cities to raise rates to pay for new water supplies and to encourage conservation. But raising rates often triggers public resistance in a state that is wary of too much government.
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Interactive: How Cost of Water in Texas Stacks Up
Texas cities have traditionally enjoyed lower water rates than most metro areas in the nation. Use this interactive to see how Texas cities compare in regard to water rates, single-family usage and weather.
Posted in
Energy
EPA, Armendariz Blasted at House Hearing
At a House subcommittee hearing Wednesday, congressional Republicans heaped criticism on the EPA and its former south-central region chief, Al Armendariz, who had been scheduled to testify but canceled at the last minute.
Posted in
Energy
Report on Electric Grid Cites Concerns With Reserves
A 135-page report by a Massachusetts-based consulting group is the latest analysis suggesting that the Texas electric grid does not have adequate reserves for future years.
