As the scorching summer days march on, so does the fear of blackouts.
Energy
In-depth reporting on oil, gas, renewable power, and policies shaping the future of energy in Texas from The Texas Tribune.
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Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aguilar on the denial of asylum petitions by border judges, Galbraith on the history of wind, Grissom talks to the head of the Jail Standards Commission, Hamilton on plans for the state’s new online university, Murphy and Ramsey on political warchests at midyear, Philpott on Texas’ trucker shortage, Ramsey talks data privacy and abortion with Susan Combs, Ramshaw on the Rick Perry’s experimental adult stem cell procedure, Root on the response to The Response, M. Smith on the country’s could-be next first lady and Tan on a few of the ways Texas will change on Sept. 1: The best of our best content from Aug. 1 to 5, 2011.
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Energy
Drought Damages Texas Infrastructure
In West Texas, the main concern is water. In cities like Houston and Fort Worth, clay soil is drying up because of the blistering summer heat, bursting water pipelines and splitting asphalt roads. Across Texas, the cause of these spiraling problems is the same: a nine-month drought that shows no signs of relenting.
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Energy
Texas Comes Close to Rolling Blackouts
After more unabating triple-digit temperatures and continued skyrocketing power demand, the Texas electric grid operator warned of a “high probability” of rolling blackouts, although as of 5 p.m. the danger appeared to have abated.
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Energy
State Climatologist: Drought Officially Worst On Record
It’s official: Texas is now in the midst of the worst one-year drought on record, according to State Climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon.
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Energy
Power Grid Still Struggling to Keep Up With Demand
Texas set another all-time record for electricity use on Wednesday, forcing the state’s grid operator to declare a power emergency. Matt Largey of KUT News reports on the state power grid’s struggle to keep up with the heat.
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Energy
ERCOT Rolling Out First Step of Emergency Procedures
As scorching temperatures continued and Texas electricity use reached another all-time high, the state grid operator initiated the first step of emergency procedures today, seeking power from other grids, including Mexico.
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Energy
High Temperatures Bring Call for Electricity Conservation
As the triple-digit temperatures stretch into August, Texas residents are blasting their air conditioners — and straining the electric grid with record demand. The grid operator is asking that residents and businesses cut down on their electricity use in the late afternoons all week.
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Energy
In Lubbock, the Evolution of Wind is on Display
Forests of enormous electric wind turbines now rise across West Texas — a far cry from the smaller, water-pumping windmills that covered the land a century ago. In Lubbock, a museum called the American Wind Power Center traces this change, juxtaposing old and new.
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Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Aaronson examines the Texas jobs “miracle,” Root on how Rick Perry built his financial portfolio, Tan and Wiseman on Perry vs. Ron Paul, Philpott on how budget cuts will affect a mental health provider, yours truly on a House freshman who was less than impressed with his first legislative experience, M. Smith on public schools charging for things that used to be free, Hamilton on a new call to reinvent higher education, Grissom on a rare stay of execution, Galbraith on the end of a Panhandle wind program, Aguilar on the increase of legal immigration into the U.S. and Texas: The best of our best content from July 25 to 29, 2011.