Texas’ drilling boom has increased demand for skilled workers and blue-collar training. But as Dave Fehling of KUHF News reports for StateImpact Texas, the rising demand comes as community colleges face funding cuts, forcing companies to cope with fewer workers.
Energy
In-depth reporting on oil, gas, renewable power, and policies shaping the future of energy in Texas from The Texas Tribune.
Posted in
Energy
Use of Silencers in Hunting Stirs Safety Debate
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is considering letting hunters use silencers on the end of their rifles. But as Mose Buchele of KUT News reports for StateImpact Texas, the proposal has raised public safety concerns.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aaronson and Tan interactively map women’s health program providers in Texas, Galbraith talks to the state’s climatologist about (what else?) the drought, Grissom with the latest on violence in youth prisons, Hamilton on why UTEP’s low four-year graduation rate may not matter, Murphy’s interactive comparing graduation rates and more at public universities in Texas, Ramsey on the redistricting end game (we think), Ramshaw on the state health commissioner’s attack on Planned Parenthood and Root on the closing of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s storied Austin bureau: The best of our best content from February 27 to March 2, 2012.
Posted in
Energy
With Water Denied, Rice Farmers Face an Uncertain Future
The Lower Colorado River Authority decided Thursday night that there wasn’t enough water in the Highland Lakes to send water downstream to rice farmers in Southeast Texas. Terrence Henry of KUT News and StateImpact Texas reports on where the farmers go from here.
Posted in
Energy
Another Hot Summer May Bring Rolling Blackouts
In a new report, the state’s electric grid operator has predicted another summer of above-average heat. And as Mose Buchele of KUT News reports for StateImpact Texas, that means Texans can expect another summer of close calls.
Posted in
Energy
Effects of Landmark Groundwater Ruling Still Unclear
Legal experts and property owners are still digesting the ramifications of a Texas Supreme Court ruling that landowners own the water beneath their land. As Mose Buchele of KUT News reports for StateImpact Texas, the consequences for landowners and conservationists remain murky.
Posted in
Energy
State Climatologist Has Eye on the Sky for Texas
John Nielsen-Gammon, Texas’ state climatologist since 2000, has seen his duties explode in the last 18 months amid public clamor for information on the drought.
Posted in
Energy
Bad News Expected Today for Texas Rice Farmers
Texas rice farmers near the Gulf Coast are anxiously awaiting word on whether they’ll get water from the Lower Colorado River Authority for a rice crop this spring. The LCRA says the farmers’ prospects are not good — which will relieve other Texans who also have a stake in the water.
Posted in
Economy
UH Creates Fund to Attract Science and Technology Faculty
University of Houston President Renu Khator is setting aside $30 million to bring in 60 new faculty members over the next two years, all of them in the science, technology, engineering and math fields.
Posted in
Energy
Natural Gas Driving Away Investment in Power Plants
More power generation could help could help Texas’ increasingly strained electric grid. But as Mose Buchele of KUT News reports for StateImpact Texas, low natural gas prices are making it less attractive for investors to build power plants.