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Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: May 6, 2014
May 6, 2014

Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: May 6, 2014

Featured

  1. Supreme Court Upholds Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, Exempts Texas (Adrian Schneider – Houston Public Media, 4/30/2014)  The Supreme Court has given the Environmental Protection Agency an important victory in its effort to reduce power plant pollution that contributes to unhealthy air in neighboring states. But the court issued its ruling in a way that is likely to exclude Texas from the effects of the law. www.houstonpublicmedia.org
  2. Air Quality Watchdog Worried About Proposed TCEQ Standard Change (Florian Martin – Houston Public Media, 5/1/2014) There are more than 100 metal recycling plants in Houston, several of them in the East End along the ship channel. The air quality in this region seems to be lower than other areas. There is no telling if this has to do with the recycling plants but what is known is that tests have found higher than usual levels of hexavalent chromium, also called Chrome VI, in the air around these plants. Chrome VI is a metal air pollutant and has been found to increase the risk of lung cancer in workers exposed to it on a daily basis. That’s why Adrian Shelley of the Air Alliance Houston is worried about a change in the Chrome VI standards by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. www.houstonpublicmedia.org
  3. Only 3 Texas counties exist outside a drought-related natural disaster area (Carol Christian – Houston Chronicle, 4/25/2014) As drought intensifies across Texas, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated all but three counties eligible for disaster assistance. Of the state’s 252 counties, 240 have deep enough drought to be included in the primary natural disaster area, according to the department’s April 23 news release. The only one of the 13 Houston-area counties not on that list is Chambers County. www.chron.com
  4. Brazoria County wonders if desalination is the answer (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle, 5/3/2014) To firm up its water supply, a Brazoria County utility is moving quickly to pump from a massive saline aquifer beneath the Houston region’s surface. The Brazosport Water Authority’s roughly $60 million project – once the first phase is completed in 2017 – would convert millions of gallons of salty water into potable, or drinking, water each day. The process, known as desalination, is used across Texas, mostly in the drier western half of the state. The Lake Jackson facility would be the first of its kind in greater Houston, which typically benefits from plentiful rain and full reservoirs. The city of Houston, in particular, is planning to meet its long-term needs with surface water and reused wastewater. www.houstonchronicle.com

EcoNotes

  • 5 May
    • Drilling Suit Highlights a Shift in the Fracking Debate (Mose Buchele, KUT News/StateImpact Texas – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
  • 3 May
    • Brazoria County wonders if desalination is the answer (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Texas water planning in ‘panic’ mode; public forum looks at options for future communities’ needs (Betty Waters – Tyler Morning News)
      www.news-journal.com
  • 2 May
    • UHCL professor receives grant to determine water quality (The Bay Area Citizen)
      www.yourhoustonnews.com
    • OTC Offshore Conference Ain’t Just About Oil and Gas (Terrence Henry – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • What a Multi-Million Dollar Lawsuit Could Mean for Fracking and Its Opponents (Mose Buchele – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • Report: Texas Farm Production is Down, Prices Are Up (Neena Satija – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Fight Over Reservoir Ramps Up as Decision Draws Near (Shelley Kofler, KERA News – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Warming means more methane emissions from wetlands, study finds (Alex Kirby – Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
  • 1 May
    • Air Quality Watchdog Worried About Proposed TCEQ Standard Change (Florian Martin – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • “Reverse commuting” could be on the cards as Woodlands area expands (Heather Alexander – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Blocking the bayou (Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Six New Power Plants Should Ease Strain On Texas Grid (Laurie Johnson – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Businesses Brace for Effects of Prairie Chicken Ruling (Neena Satija – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Houston’s pollution is getting worse, report says (Josh Cain – Houston Business Journal)
      www.bizjournals.com
    • Texas faces summer power crunch despite six new generators (Ryan Holeywell – Fuel Fix)
      http://fuelfix.com
    • East Texans Don’t Want Marvin Nichols Reservoir Included In State’s Water Supply (Shelley Kofler – KERA News)
      http://keranews.org
    • The 10 Most Sustainable Architecture Projects In The US – Huffington Post (Karissa Rosenfield – Green Sight)
      www.greensight.com
  • 30 April
    • Environmentalists, property-rights advocates joining forces for Legislature (Greg Harman – Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
    • Cut in Funding Followed Early Release of Air Quality Study (Dianna Wray – Houston Press)
      http://blogs.houstonpress.com
    • Harris-Galveston Subsidence Districts WaterWise Program Helps Families Save Water (WATR News)
      http://watrnews.com
    • Supreme Court Upholds Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, Exempts Texas (Andrew Schneider – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Environmentalists, property-rights advocates joining forces for Legislature (Greg Harman – Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
    • Slaying “dragons of inaction”: A psychologist’s take on communication for climate action (Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
    • Tompkins: South Texas is a wonderland of wildness and wildlife (Shannon Tompkins – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Beaumont could flush fluoride from water supply (Dan Wallach – Beaumont Enterprise)
      www.beaumontenterprise.com
    • Officials jump into river boundary issue (Ed Sterling – The Statesman)
      www.statesman.com
    • Google’s ‘green’ energy plan: Build, learn, expand – Christian Science Monitor (Green Sight)
      www.greensight.com
    • Consortium targets Capri Sun in new push to emphasize recycling (Jim Johnson – Plastics News)
      www.plasticsnews.com
    • Could “reverse commuting” become the new trend in Houston? (Michael Sudhalter – The Leader)
      www.theleadernews.com
  • 29 April
    • High court backs EPA rule that limits coal pollution (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Volunteers help beautify Lake Houston Wilderness Park (Bryan Kirk – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Evening in the Park was a true spectacle (Molly Glentzer – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Supreme Court upholds EPA regulation on cross-state pollution (Kent Hoover – Houston Business Journal)
      www.bizjournals.com
    • Katy Prairie Conservancy hosting nature events on consecutive weekends (The Rancher)
      www.yourhoustonnews.com
    • Beltway 8 vs. huge land formations: Mapping tool lets you realize its enormity (Craig Hlavaty – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Loosening toll limits could improve roads, at a price (Dug Begley – Houston Chronicle)
      http://blog.chron.com
    • Is the Increasingly Rare Alligator Snapping Turtle Next on Endangered List? (Alex Dropkin – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • Why Alaska is Reconsidering Texas-Inspired Oil Tax Cut (Dave Fehling – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • SCOTUS Rules Against State Of Texas In EPA Cross-Border State Pollution Case (Ryan Poppe – Texas Public Radio)
      http://tpr.org
    • Sierra Club Worried About Precedent From Nuclear Waste Site Ruling (KXWT News)
      http://kxwt.org
    • Texas Touts Lighter Regs in Wooing California Firms (Aman Batheja – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Desalination pilot-study funding approved for Corpus Christi (D&WR News)
      www.desalination.biz
    • ‘Quiet’ hurricane season expected this year (Kayla Meyer – The Port Lavaca Wave)
      http://portlavacawave.com
    • Obama’s transportation plan sent to Congress (Joan Lowy – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
  • 28 April
  • 27 April
  • 26 April
    • Protesters march to stop Keystone XL pipeline (Vanessa Johnston – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
  • 25 April
    • Only 3 Texas counties exist outside a drought-related natural disaster area (Carol Christian – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
  • 22 April