Using robotic 3D printers that can build the concrete walls of a house, a pair of Texas startups say the technology could help alleviate two crises: the housing shortage and climate change.
Noah Alcala Bach
Noah Alcala Bach was a summer 2023 Austin-based reporting fellow. Before arriving at the Tribune, Noah was an intern in Brussels at Politico EU, a reporter for the Columbia Missourian, an intern at the San Antonio Current and a contributing correspondent for the San Antonio Express-News.
Posted in
New Texas Laws 2023
Starting Sept. 1 in Texas, your speed limit may vary based on local highway conditions
Lawmakers who ushered through the change say the new law will make roads safer during storms or construction.
Posted in
Environment
New forecast predicts more hurricanes because of record-warm sea surface temperatures
Texas meteorologists remind residents to make sure they have a plan in the event of a tropical storm
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Texas state troopers are routinely stopping motorists of color in Austin, data shows
More than 8 in 10 people charged by state troopers since they began helping Austin police have been people of color. In Southeast Austin, a neighborhood president calls it “outright racial profiling.”
Posted in
Environment
On the Texas-Mexico border, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service gives an owl protected status, seeks to declare two mussel species endangered
Wildlife groups have long lobbied for increased protection for the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl. The agency says the mussels species are threatened by reduced flow and poor water quality in the Rio Grande.
Posted in
Politics
U.S. sues Texas after Gov. Greg Abbott declines to remove floating border barrier
The U.S. Department of Justice made good on its warning last week that it would sue Texas unless the state agreed to remove the barrier in the Rio Grande near Eagle Pass.
Posted in
Energy
EPA will decide if the state is doing enough to reduce pollution in two East Texas counties
The federal agency has settled a lawsuit the Sierra Club brought over pollution from a coal-burning power plant. The agreement requires the EPA to weigh in on the state’s plan to improve air quality in Rusk and Panola counties.
Posted in
Operation Lone Star
Mexico files diplomatic complaint over Gov. Greg Abbott’s floating border barriers
The Mexican government plans to send an inspection team to see if Texas’ buoys have crossed into Mexico’s side of the border.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
Gov. Greg Abbott sends more state police to patrol Austin after city leaders call for end to partnership
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson had said that troopers pulling a gun on a 10-year-old prompted the end of the agreement. A video of that encounter shows troopers with guns pointed at the ground, not the child.
Posted in
Environment
A Comal County ranch owner ponders selling his land, setting off another clash between property rights and environmental concerns
When the owner applied for a state permit that could pave the way for a subdivision, neighbors and environmentalists rallied against it in the name of protecting the area’s rivers and the Edwards Aquifer.
