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Our reporting on all platforms will be truthful, transparent and respectful; our facts will be accurate, complete and fairly presented. When we make a mistake — and from time to time, we will — we will work quickly to fully address the error, correcting it within the story, detailing the error on the story page and adding it to this running list of Tribune corrections. If you find an error, email corrections@texastribune.org.

A Texas Senate panel told a fellow Republican lawmaker Wednesday to reconsider his legislation that would require energy companies to plug inactive wells within 15 years.

Texas Legislature 2025

A Republican effort to set deadlines to plug orphan wells in Texas hits resistance

By Carlos Nogueras RamosMarch 12, 2025

The bill would have set deadlines for the oil and gas industry to plug inactive wells, which can pose a danger to the environment.

Miriam Guzman, left, and Theresa Servin pose for a photo on Friday in Odessa. After immigrating to the United States, Guzman met Servin, with whom she bonded over a shared inclination for advocacy. Both women are helping migrants become U.S. citizens.

Economy

In Odessa, multiple efforts are underway to help immigrants stay and work

By Carlos Nogueras RamosFeb. 20, 2025

A naturalized citizen, along with other business leaders, are working to create new resources for undocumented people living in the Permian Basin.

Texas oil and gas companies celebrated the state winning the authority to permit certain types of carbon capture projects that would inject carbon from the atmosphere into the ground.

Energy

Why oil and gas companies want state oversight for carbon dioxide injection

By Carlos Nogueras Ramos and Alejandra MartinezFeb. 6, 2025Feb. 7, 2025

Environmentalists are worried the state — known for a lax approach to regulation — is not prepared for the added responsibility of regulating certain carbon capture projects.

An array of oil pumps operate outside of Tarzan on Sept. 15, 2023. Oil and gas companies released less methane during the extraction phases, according to a new report. But critics of the industry are skeptical.

Energy

Oil companies leaked less methane in West Texas, a new report says. Environmentalists are skeptical.

By Carlos Nogueras RamosJan. 21, 2025Jan. 21, 2025

Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere and is 80 times the potency of carbon dioxide.

State Sen. Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, on the Senate floor on May 15, 2019. Perry hopes the Legislature this year will create a dedicated fund for water issues.

Texas Legislature 2025

Texas has a big water problem. This state lawmaker hopes he has the solution.

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Alejandra MartinezJan. 16, 2025

Texas’ population is booming and there is not enough water for everyone. State Sen. Charles Perry hopes to fix that.

Eric Selinger walks on his property near the Pecos River outside Imperial on Oct. 8. He previously farmed shrimp but now hopes that treated produced water could bring the land back to life.

Energy

Recycled oilfield water could aid drought-stricken West Texas

By Martha Pskowski, Inside Climate NewsDec. 10, 2024

Oilfield wastewater injected underground is causing earthquakes and blowouts. Now, pilot projects are exploring whether this water could be treated and used to grow crops.

The Ector County Courthouse in Odessa on Nov. 7. Officials plan to build a new courthouse that doesn't have leaking pipes and rats.

Politics

Why a West Texas county is building a new courthouse even after voters rejected the proposal

By Carlos Nogueras RamosNov. 21, 2024

Officials took the extraordinary step of taking on new debt to replace the old courthouse, which has been plagued by rats and other pests, elevator breakdowns and flooding.

Cornudas, with a population of less than 20, hosts a chili cook-off hoping to draw more than 1,000 visitors on Sept. 28. Small towns like Cornudas have struggled to grow along with the state's population.

Graphics and data reporting

Texas’ uneven population boom is creating ghost towns in many rural counties

By Jayme Lozano Carver and Graphics by Chris EssigNov. 14, 2024

Local leaders and rural revitalization experts say Texas’ smallest towns can survive — despite a shift to urban and suburban counties — but it will take investments.