ECONOTES 2012-12-10: Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region

Featured

1. Galveston Coastline To Go Virtual Thanks To New Partnership (Jack Williams and Laurie Johnson – KUHF News, 12/5/2012)
   Because Galveston Island is actually a barrier reef, it shifts over time. That shifting leads to both erosion and beach growth. That creates a big challenge when it comes to knowing how beaches will react to man-made changes along the coastline. The Galveston Park Board of Trustees is now partnering with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to create a virtual model of the coastline and a strategy that will help predict how the beaches will move in the future.
   http://app1.kuhf.org/
2. Water, jobs, infrastructure will be issues for legislators in coming session (Rusty Graham – Your Memorial News, 11/30/2012)
   State Representatives, Bill Callegari (R-132) and Jim Murphy (R-133), talked about what area residents might expect from the 83rd Legislature, from water and government waste to manufacturing and tax reform. Water will likely be the state’s critical issue for years to come, as more reservoirs but federal regulations and requirements make them hard to build. Other ways of increasing a usable water supply include increasing the reuse of wastewater, and desalination of both seawater and brackish water.
   http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/
3. Funding Awarded Towards Houston’s First Public Hydrogen Fueling Station (Guidry News, 12/5/2012)
   Vision Industries Corporation (OTCBB: VIIC), Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), Air Products and project partners were recently awarded $500,000 from the Texas Emission Reduction Program (TERP) to partially fund the building of the first public hydrogen fueling station in the state. The station, which is proposed to be fed from an existing hydrogen pipeline, will fuel port trucks and be publicly available for personal vehicles at the Port of Houston.
   http://www.guidrynews.com/

EcoNotes

• 10 December
  • Texas Wind Power Considers Future Of Fewer Tax Breaks (Dave Fehling – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
• 7 December
  • NRG Cancels Proposed Limestone 3 Coal Project (Guidry News)
    http://guidrynews.com/
  • Why the UT Fracking Study Controversy Matters (Terrence Henry – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
• 6 December
  • Review of UT Fracking Study Finds Failure to Disclose Conflict of Interest (Updated) (Terrence Henry – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  • Master Naturalist Program Seeking Applicants (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
    http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/
  • Facing Long Odds, Community Still Fighting Border Coal Project (Mose Buchele – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  • DOE and EPA Release Annual Fuel Economy Guide with 2013 Models
    http://yosemite.epa.gov/
• 5 December
  • Galveston Coastline To Go Virtual Thanks To New Partnership (Jack Williams and Laurie Johnson – KUHF News)
    http://app1.kuhf.org/
  • Funding Awarded Towards Houston’s First Public Hydrogen Fueling Station (Guidry News)
    http://www.guidrynews.com/
  • Are New Words Needed for a Warming World? (Mose Buchele – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  • Planting More Hope for Texas Wildfire Victims (Elizabeth Trovall – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  • As Disposal Wells Age, The Risk of Stronger Quakes Grows (Mose Buchele – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  • Report predicts big boost from natural gas exports (Jennifer Dlouhy – Houston Chronicle)
    http://www.chron.com/
  • TCEQ Approves Fines Totaling $611,335 (TCEQ News)
    http://www.tceq.texas.gov/
• 4 December
  • Santa Caught in Oil Disaster Outside Houston Arctic Technology Conference (Guidry News)
    http://www.guidrynews.com/
  • Garbage Gas: Is Methane Going To Waste in Texas? (Dave Fehling – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
• 3 December
  • Landowner Fights Keystone XL Pipeline By Suing the State (Terrence Henry – StateImpact)
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
• 30 November
  • NOAA proposes listing 66 reef-building coral species under the Endangered Species Act (NOAA News)
    http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/
  • Portions of Texas move back into severe drought (Ramit Plushnick-Masti – Houston Chronicle)
    http://www.chron.com/
  • Water, jobs, infrastructure will be issues for legislators in coming session (Rusty Graham – Your Memorial News)
    http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/
• 29 November
  • $4.2 million beach plan approved (Harvey Rice – Houston Chronicle)
    http://www.chron.com/
  • Westheimer to be cut down to two lanes for construction as it becomes more pedestrian friendly (Whitney Radley – CultureMap Houston)
    http://houston.culturemap.com/