The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
The Fourth of July flood bore a striking similarity to the Hill Country flood that killed 10 summer campers in 1987. In the following years, officials took little action to protect against the next storm. Full Story
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Established by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge was set to grow up to 700,000 acres to protect wildlife in West Texas and the Panhandle. Full Story
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Most of the camps were built decades ago, before modern modeling and flood maps. Counties have little power to regulate construction flood plains. Full Story
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With Democrats’ walkout over redistricting bringing the House to a standstill, both parties are accusing each other of abandoning Central Texas flood victims. Full Story
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They lost homes and summer cabins to the July 4 flood in Kerr County. Now they are weighing whether it makes sense to rebuild. Full Story
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Most victims were Texans, but some were visiting from other states like California, Florida and Alabama. The youngest victims were 1 year old; the oldest was 91. Full Story
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After reaching the end of their automotive lives, the batteries are being reused to provide lower-cost grid energy storage. Full Story
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Only one Democrat taking part in the quorum break was absent from the panel as the group discussed five bills and the chair vowed their work would go on. Full Story
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The five-year-old plan, required by the state, detailed when additional monitoring was to take place and who was responsible for alerting the public to evacuate. Full Story
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Residents told state lawmakers about what they’ve lost and the hardships they’re experiencing almost a month after the July 4 disaster devastated the region. Full Story
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Their statements to state legislators marked the first time county officials have spoken publicly about what they were doing the morning of the disaster that killed more than 100 people in the county. Full Story
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Lawmakers plan to hear testimony Thursday in Kerr County. Questions remain about how state and local entities responded to flood warnings. Full Story
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Amid increasingly intense weather, the Chemical Safety Board is the lone independent agency watching over the Gulf Coast’s petrochemical corridor. Full Story
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Texas law largely allows landowners to do what they want with the groundwater beneath them, potentially protecting the latest plan to ship water out of East Texas. Full Story
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The fund opens a new era of public land acquisition and park development for Texas, which ranks 35th nationally in state park acreage per capita. Full Story
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Students and naturalists have been sneaking onto private land to extricate threatened native plants: “This is a war between us and the developers, and nobody’s calling uncle.” Full Story
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At least two summer camps in the Texas Hill Country have invited campers back after sustaining little to no damage from the flood. Other camps are still combing through the rubble. Full Story
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The One Big Beautiful Bill drastically shortens the timeline for wind and solar projects to qualify for tax credits. This will impact even Texas, where wind and solar power have boomed and power demand is rising. Full Story
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A group representing High Plains region farmers has launched a campaign to make buyers aware of synthetic fibers’ impact on the environment and health. Full Story
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Lawmakers serving on special committees investigating deadly floods blasted a river authority for failing to build a flood warning system on the Guadalupe River. Full Story
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