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June 1, 2015

Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: June 1, 2015

Featured

  1. Is a lack of federal funding to blame for Monday’s flooding along Brays Bayou? (Editorial – Houston Chronicle, 5/28/2015)
    “…Floods are nothing new for the neighborhoods near those muddy waters, but after Tropical Storm Allison the federal government united with the Harris County Flood Control District to improve water retention and flood prevention in the Brays Bayou watershed. The project began with optimistic expectations, working off a bipartisan local-federal framework established by former Houston-area U.S. Reps. Tom DeLay, a Republican, and Ken Bentsen, a Democrat. However, the promised federal funding has been hard to come by. Groups such as the Bayou Preservation Association have had to engage in letter-writing campaigns to convince the federal government simply to reimburse the flood control district as promised. As the funds have tightened, the construction along Brays Bayou has slowed to a trickle. Now a project that was supposed to be completed last year has been pushed back to 2020, according to Dr. Phil Bedient, director of the Severe Storm Prediction, Education and Evacuation from Disaster Center at Rice University. That’s six years of potential floodwaters – including Monday’s flood – that could have been significantly reduced.”
    www.chron.com
  2. Pocket prairie becomes classroom for students (Valerie Sweeten – Houston Chronicle, 5/25/2015)
    “It’s a classroom setting of tall grasses, native plants and Monarch butterflies where Westside High School students are learning lessons with the Katy Prairie Conservancy. As a Prairie Builder School, Westside High School gets to watch its “pocket prairie,” which is 1.5 acres, flourish with native seeds and grasses that not only bring the landscape to life, but also attract small wildlife and insects. Grades 9-12 have been able to take advantage of the project they been part of for several years. This reclaimed field that was slated to become a parking lot brings the natural world to students, according to Carolyn Klein, a 15-year veteran environmental science teacher at Westside. The school works hand in hand with Jaime González, conservation education director for KPC. Along with González’s guidance, the school has technical assistance, educational tools and support at its disposal to ensure the project’s success.”
    www.chron.com
  3. Climate Change, a Factor in Texas Floods, Largely Ignored (Neena Satija and Jim Malewitz – The Texas Tribune, 5/27/2015)
    “Climate change is taking a toll on Texas, and the devastating floods that have killed at least 15 people and left 12 others missing across the state are some of the best evidence yet of that phenomenon, state climatologist John Nielsen-Gammon said in an interview Wednesday… Extreme weather events, and more of them, are among the most agreed-upon effects of global warming in all the scientific literature on the subject, said Nielsen-Gammon, who is also a professor at Texas A&M University. Part of the explanation is that ocean temperatures are rising, bringing more moist air into the state that can create storm systems. In the past century, precipitation in Texas is up 7 to 10 percent, and the frequency of two-day heavy rainfall spells has nearly doubled… But for the last several years, legislation calling for climate-change studies has not succeeded in the Capitol. ”
    www.texastribune.org

EcoNotes

  • 31 May
  • 30 May
    • Here’s what the finalized Clean Water Rule says and why it’s causing controversy (Eagle Ford Texas)
      http://eaglefordtexas.com
  • 29 May
    • Texas Drought Eases, but Aquifers Are Slow to Recharge (Laura Rice, Texas Standard – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Emails show how easily Texas regulators roll over for coal polluters (Amy Silverstein – Dallas Observer)
      www.dallasobserver.com
    • Electric Industry Created Their Own Air Pollution Permits, Held Private Meetings With Texas Regulators (Matthew Kasper, Republic Report – Truthout)
      www.truth-out.org
    • Metro Announces 3 New Board Members (Mass Transit)
      www.masstransitmag.com
    • Latest US proposal for ethanol could have political fallout (Mary Clare Jalonick – WSB-TV)
      www.wsbtv.com
    • USDA plans to inject $100 million on ethanol infrastructure: sources (Chris Prentice – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • U.S. EPA proposing temporary pesticide-free zones for honeybees (Carey Gillam – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • Mills Scholar researches turfgrass water needs (Kathy Wythe – Texas Water Resources Institute)
      http://twri.tamu.edu
    • Flood recovery resources are available through AgriLife Extension (Texas Water Resources Institute)
      http://twri.tamu.edu
  • 28 May
    • FEMA Gives Texans More Time to Assess Flood Damage (Patrick Svitek – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Houston Solar Company Partners with Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC) (News Box)
      http://newsbox.com
    • Is a lack of federal funding to blame for Monday’s flooding along Brays Bayou? (Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Flood Cleanup Means Mountains Of Debris (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Houston Flood Waters Contain Hidden Health Dangers (Michael Hagerty – Houston Matters)
      www.houstonmatters.org
    • Climate Change, a Factor in Texas Floods, Is Largely Ignored by Lawmakers (Neena Satija and Jim Malewitz, The Texas Tribune – Emergency Management)
      www.emergencymgmt.com
    • Clarifying The Clean Water Act’s Reach (Jessica Morrison – C&EN)
      http://cen.acs.org
    • New clean water ruling by EPA gets mixed reaction (Brian Lambert – MinnPost)
      www.minnpost.com
    • Environment: New Clean Water Rule finalized, but the fighting is not over (Bob Berwyn – Summit County Citizens Voice)
      http://summitcountyvoice.com
    • New Bass license plate aims to increase funding for fisheries (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
    • Exxon, Chevron holders say ‘no’ to adding climate experts to boards (Anna Driver – Planet Ark News)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
  • 27 May
    • Climate Change, a Factor in Texas Floods, Largely Ignored (Neena Satija and Jim Malewitz – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Why kids need to go outside (Carol Brejot – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • State Parks Recovering from Recent Storms (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
    • Construction kicks off for hydroelectric plant near Houston (Jordan Blum – Fuel Fix)
      http://fuelfix.com
    • Texas Citizen Groups Petition EPA Over Coal-Fired Power Plants Exempt from Federal Air Pollution Limits (Adrian Shelley – airCurrent News)
      http://airalliancehouston.org
    • Those Who Forget History in Texas are Doomed to Repeat It (Elena Craft – EDF)
      http://blogs.edf.org
    • In Texas Senate, Smooth Sailing for Shark Fin Ban (Ryan McCrimmon – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Sugar Land Approves First Steps for Long-Term Development of Cullinan Park (Fort Bend Star)
      www.fortbendstar.com
    • Heavy rain eases Texas drought; swollen rivers and lakes may need weeks to return to normal (Juan A. Lozano and Seth Robbins – U.S. News)
      www.usnews.com
    • Ehrler and TPWD Outdoor Programs Big Winners at Toyota Texas Bass Classic (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
    • Houston Floods Bring Death and Destruction (Liberty Voice)
      http://guardianlv.com
    • Israel-Texas researchers win top desalination award (David Shamah – Start-Up Israel)
      www.timesofisrael.com
  • 26 May
    • Some Houston suburbs hit harder than others by downpour, flooding (Mihir Zaveri & Cindy Horswell – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Houston drone video reveals extent of major flooding along Buffalo Bayou (Angela Fritz – The Washington Post)
      www.washingtonpost.com
    • Pocket prairie becomes classroom for students (Valerie Sweeten – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Touring Buffalo Bayou Park’s New Underwater Features from Overhead (Swamplot)
      http://swamplot.com
    • Buffalo Bayou Park underwater after recent historic flooding (Lauren Talarico – KHOU 11 News)
      www.khou.com
    • Rain was in the forecast, but not 162 billion gallons of it (Eric Berger – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Galveston scoops up free sand to build new beach (Harvey Rice – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • In Texas, the Race to Build in Harm’s Way Outpaces Flood-Risk Studies and Warming Impacts (Andrew C. Revkin – The New York Times)
      http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com
    • Advocates Fret Disaster Bill Won’t Make Cut in House (Patrick Svitek – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Fleeing The Fast-Rising White Oak Bayou: ‘It Was Pretty Crazy’ (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • METRO Resumes Limited Service Following Historic Flooding (Jo-Carolyn Goode – Houston Style Magazine)
      http://stylemagazine.com
    • Devastating Floods in Texas Just Latest Example of Global Weather Extremes (Jon Queally – eNews Parks Forest)
      www.enewspf.com
  • 22 May
    • 17 Recreational Trail Projects to Share $2.38 Million in Grants (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
    • In the garden with Urban Harvest: Summer peas, beans provide snappy flavors for meals (Bob Randall, Ph. D. – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
  • 20 May
  • 19 May
  • 15 May
    • Fueling the Conversation on Energy Policies That Promote Long-Term Global Prosperity and Security (Reid Hoffman – Linked in)
      www.linkedin.com