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October 20, 2013

ECONOTES 2013-10-22: Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region

Featured

  1. Midtown street a sign of things to come (Robin Foster – Memorial Examiner, 10/15/2013)
    Street construction in Houston has reached a crossroads, and a project in Midtown was at its center on Thursday, Oct. 10. The project, which rebuilt portions of Bagby and Pierce streets in Midtown, is the first in Texas to be certified by the Greenroads Foundation for meeting select criteria for sustainability. But its design also illustrates a “transformative” idea proposed by Mayor Annise Parker in a new Complete Streets and Transportation Plan for the city.
    http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/
  2. Rainfall halts water plan for Matagorda Bay (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle, 10/16/2013)
    The Lower Colorado River Authority told state regulators Wednesday that heavy rainfall had eliminated the urgency to withhold water from the bay for the benefit of upstream users. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality was scheduled to approve the emergency plan next month. “Significant runoff has occurred in the lower basin that will provide required inflows to the bay this month,” Becky Motal, the authority’s general manager, wrote to the state commission. She left open the possibility of the issue returning in December.
    http://www.chron.com/
  3. Want to Learn About a Nearby Dam? In Texas, Some Questions Are Off Limits (Mose Buchele – StateImpact, 10/16/2013)
    In the FEMA booklet “Living with Dams,” the agency urges people to “ask questions” about the condition and hazard rating of dams near their homes. But here in Texas, no one needs to answer those questions. “There are certain things that we are not allowed to share like the hazard classification of a dam or something that’s more related to homeland security,” Warren Samuelson, Manager of the Texas Dam Safety Program, explained to StateImpact Texas. The reason is a 2005 opinion by the Texas Attorney General that keeps information about dams secret – citing concerns for homeland security. The results of that secrecy in Texas can be confusing.
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  4. Controversial “restoration.” (David Crossley – HoustonTomorrow, 10/17/2013) The US Army Corps of Engineers has denied a Nationwide Permit to “restore” 7,200 linear feet of Buffalo Bayou near the River Oaks Country Club. The project, by the Harris County Flood Control District (HCFCD), is meant to deal with erosion and rivercourse issues, and was originally proposed by the Bayou Preservation Association.
    www.houstontomorrow.org

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