An analysis by the research arm of Environment Texas found that 275 companies across the state reported emitting 63 million pounds of hazardous and climate-warming pollutants from their facilities in 2017.
Environment
Coverage of climate, conservation, natural resources, and environmental policy shaping the state, from The Texas Tribune.
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Texas Legislature 2019
State lawmakers aim to lock in funding for Texas parks, historic sites
In 1993, the Legislature passed a law that said state parks and historic sites could receive all of the money generated by a tax on the sale of sporting goods. Since then, state lawmakers have given the parks department only about 40 percent of those collections.
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Energy
Report: Permian Basin oil producers flaring more natural gas than they told the state
An analysis of government satellite data by the Environmental Defense Fund shows that the amount of natural gas that energy companies burned off in 2017 is twice as high as what they reported to state regulators.
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Texas Legislature 2019
After Hurricane Harvey, Texas senator eyes using state’s savings for flood control
State Sen. Charles Perry, chairman of the Senate Committee on Water and Rural Affairs, has a package of bills that could create Texas’ first statewide flood plan. He says coastal Texans aren’t the only ones at risk of property loss.
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Energy
Report: Texas coal power plants leaching toxic pollutants into groundwater
Analyzing groundwater monitoring data that power companies are now required to report to the federal government, the Environmental Integrity Project found that groundwater under 16 Texas coal plants had unsafe levels of contaminants including arsenic. The pollution is linked to disposal pits for spent coal.
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Blowout: Inside America's energy gamble
How a new oil boom is transforming West Texas and altering climate change math
Our series on the global implications of a new golden age for Permian Basin oil began with a very local story: How towns large and small are trying to deal with an explosion in drilling activity, population, traffic and other effects of the new boom.
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Blowout: Inside America's energy gamble
U.S. fossil fuel exports spur Asian building boom, climate worries
As American natural gas production soars, South Korea rushes to build tankers to move that energy to Asia’s top economies.
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Demographics
Catch up on some of The Texas Tribune’s top projects from 2018
The Texas Tribune produced several deep-dive investigations in 2018 that examined various issues that affect Texans across the state. Here’s a look at some of those standout projects.
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Environment
Rebuilding commission calls Hurricane Harvey a “wakeup call” for Texas
A report by the Commission to Rebuild Texas says there is an urgent need to “future-proof” the Gulf Coast.
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Protecting the Coast
Galveston residents weigh in on hurricane levee proposal that some call “a really bad, bad plan”
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Texas General Land Office proposed a massive levee system for the Houston area in late October that would cost as much as $20 billion. It’s part of a larger plan to protect the state’s coastline from hurricane storm surge.