Groesbeck, which has received no measurable rainfall since April, ranks near the top of the state’s list of communities in danger of running out of water. Local leaders are attempting a quick fix, lest the town run out of water by Thanksgiving.
Environment
Coverage of climate, conservation, natural resources, and environmental policy shaping the state, from The Texas Tribune.
Posted in
Criminal Justice
TribWeek: In Case You Missed It
Ramshaw and Root on the debate that dominated the nation’s political news, Tan and Ramshaw on how it will affect Rick Perry’s campaign, Philpott on what “oops” might mean for Perry in South Carolina, Root on what it means in Iowa, Dehn with the latest Weekend Insider video, Galbraith on the split fates of water-related constitutional amendments, Grissom on an arrest in a 1986 murder case, Hamilton on UT-Arlington’s efforts to control tuition costs and M. Smith, Murphy and Gerdau on West Texas schools raising money with wind farms: The best of our best content from November 7 to 11, 2011.
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Energy
On Refinery Row, an Effort to Expose Health Problems
Terrence Henry of KUT News and NPR’s StateImpact Texas spoke with one longtime resident of Corpus Christi trying to get families to speak out about the health problems they’ve faced living on what some call Refinery Row.
Posted in
Energy
Windfall for Nolan County Schools
Energy development capitalizing on the high winds in West Texas has injected sluggish rural communities with new economic lifeblood. The “windfall” has bestowed hundreds of millions of dollars — an embarrassment of riches — on mostly tiny schools.
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Demographics
Weekend Insider: Border Business Trouble, West Texas Wind Boom
In this edition of the Texas Tribune Weekend Insider, reporter Julian Aguilar explains the challenges and temptations facing business owners on the border. And reporter Morgan Smith takes us to West Texas, where school districts have benefited from the wind energy boom.
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Energy
Updated: EPA, Despite Fire From Texas, Issues State’s First Greenhouse Gas Permit
On Thursday, the Environmental Protection Agency, which took over greenhouse gas permitting in Texas in the face of the state’s resistance, issued its first such permit in the state — to a yet-to-be-built natural gas power plant in Llano County.
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Energy
Surrounded by Refineries, a Community Worries for Its Future
A number of Texas plants have appeared on never-before-published pollution watch lists compiled by the Environmental Protection Agency. Terrence Henry of KUT News and NPR’s StateImpact Texas reports on a Corpus Christi neighborhood that sits right in the middle of several refineries on the list.
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Energy
Water Propositions Meet Different Fates at Ballot Box
Amid the most intense drought in state history, Texas voters split on a pair of water-related constitutional amendments that had the backing of many environmentalists and businesses. Analysts are scrambling to explain their differing fates.
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Energy
Regulatory System Allows Some Plants to Skirt Pollution Laws
Several Texas plants have appeared on never-before-published pollution watch lists compiled by the Environmental Protection Agency. Mose Buchele of KUT News and StateImpact Texas looks at the regulatory environment that allows industries to keep polluting.
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Energy
Updated: Railroad Commission Scraps Concealed Firearms Ban
Employees of the agency that regulates the Texas oil and gas industry will now be able to carry concealed firearms as they go about their work, following a unanimous vote on Tuesday by the three commissioners.