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July 6, 2015

Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: July 6, 2015

Featured

  1. Growth poses new challenges to Jones State Forest (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle, 6/29/2015)
    “Jones State Forest was in the middle of nowhere when Texas created it eight decades ago – some 40 miles separated the piney woods and Houston. These days, the forest is an island of tall trees surrounded on all sides by apartment complexes, single-family houses and strip malls. The Woodlands and Texas 242 border the southwest side of the property and FM 1488, the increasingly busy roadway, runs through the middle of the it. Montgomery County’s increasing urbanization is bringing a new set of challenges to the woods, which the state initially purchased to hold onto a piece of a once-great forest that was being clear-cut by timber harvesters.”
    www.chron.com
  2. Galveston Scientists Release Rescued Kemp’s Ridley Turtles (Syeda Hasan – Houston Public Media, 7/3/2015)
    Joe Flanagan, chief veterinarian at the Houston Zoo, is on a boat about 25 miles offshore from Galveston. He’s directing a team of researchers as they prepare to release turtles into the water. The animals often get caught by fisherman, and the group rescues and rehabilitates them. On this trip, they released eight Kemp’s ridley, an endangered species of sea turtles… large populations nest in the Gulf of Mexico, but their numbers have been steadily declining. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department is still assessing if some of that decrease stems from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010.
    www.houstonpublicmedia.org
  3. Protecting Jobs … Or People? Supreme Court Declares EPA Pollution Rule Illegal (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
    “The U.S. Supreme Court narrowly ruled that the federal Environmental Protection Agency’s new regulations to cut pollution from power plants were illegal because they failed to consider the enormous cost to comply. Texas was one of 21 states involved in the litigation. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said the ruling was a ‘significant victory in our efforts to rein in an out-of-control EPA.’ Paxton alleged the new rules were killing jobs. But proponents of the new rules said not enforcing them would risk killing people. Justice Elena Kagan in her dissent said cutting power plant pollution including mercury would have saved ‘any, many lives.’ The group Environment Texas said the state has some of the dirtiest coal-burning power plants in America and that if the new rules meant shutting them down, so be it.”
    www.houstonpublicmedia.org

EcoNotes

  • 6 July
    • Researcher Says Seaweed Can Provide Snapshot Of Ocean Life (Syeda Hasan – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Lone Star Coastal National Recreation Area will undermine property rights (Katrina Evenhouse – The Galveston County Daily News)
      www.galvnews.com
    • Will Pope Francis inspire climate activism among Texas Catholics? (Greg Harman – Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
  • 3 July
    • Galveston Scientists Release Rescued Kemp’s Ridley Turtles (Syeda Hasan – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Environmental Justice Report: 81% Of Products Tested At U.S. Dollar Stores Are Unsafe (Kit O’Connell – MintPress News)
      www.mintpressnews.com
    • Oil Rig Count Rises for First Time This Year (Mose Buchele, KUT News/StateImpact Texas – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Hey, Texas! Get outside and visit your wild neighbors (HMNS News)
      http://blog.hmns.org
    • Oil Rig Count Rises for First Time This Year (Mose Buchele, KUT News/StateImpact Texas – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Lawsuit filed against U.S. over protections for rare wolf (Curtis Skinner – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • BP reaches $18.7 billion settlement over deadly 2010 spill (Terry Wade and Kristen Hays – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • White House directs GMO regulators to update, improve oversight (Carey Gillam – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • Like a mysterious movie set, the moss-fringed curtains of Caddo open on fascinating history and abundant wildlife. (Preston Kirk – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • 3 Days in the Field (Mike Cox – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • When the sun goes down, the fish come up. (Larry D. Hodge – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • First, you acquire some iconic Texas land. Then what? (Rob McCorkle – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • Meet Scarlet Colley, patron saint of the Laguna Madre dolphins. (Melissa Gaskill – – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
  • 2 July
    • Fearing Competition From Other States, Texas Changes Law For Pollution Permits (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Despite Rains, Lake Release Limits Upheld (Tyler Whitson, Austin Monitor – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Texas to get $750 million from BP oil spill settlement (Joshua Cain – Fuel Fix)
      http://fuelfix.com
    • BP Payment Plan: Texas Gets Share Of Billions Over 18 Years (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • BP pays record $18.7 billion to settle claims in Deepwater spill (The Kansas City Star)
      www.kansascity.com
    • Allergies and Air Quality (airCurrent News)
      http://airalliancehouston.org
    • Under BP Deal, Another $788 Million Will Flow to Texas (Jim Malewitz – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • A cartoonist takes on the BP oil spill (Nick Anderson – Houston Chronicle)
      http://blog.chron.com
    • Texas to get nearly $790M in BP oil spill settlement (Beaumont Enterprise)
      www.beaumontenterprise.com
    • Pilot Program Provides Free Transfers to Cash-Paying Riders (Mass Transit)
      www.masstransitmag.com
    • After HB 40, What’s Next for Local Drilling Rules in Texas? (Mose Buchele – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • Saving water for a not-so-rainy day (Kelly Comstock -  Water)
      http://brownandcaldwell.com
    • African Dust Blows Into Houston, More on the Way (Travis Herzog – ABC 13 News)
      http://abc13.com
    • Texas to receive nearly $1 billion in settlement with BP (KFDM News)
      www.kfdm.com
    • Texas reaches agreement on Deep Water Horizon case (The Pearland Journal)
      www.yourhoustonnews.com
    • DEP and FWC respond to record BP settlement, applauds Gulf Coast recovery progress (Phil Ammann – Saint Peters Blog)
      www.saintpetersblog.com
    • Polar bears face steep declines because of melting sea ice: U.S. study (Laura Zuckerman – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • Wisconsin Governor Walker signs bill banning microbeads (Brendan O’Brien – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • Recent flooding could potentially speed up spread of zebra mussels (Leslie Lee – Texas Water Resources Institute)
      http://twri.tamu.edu
    • Celebrate Smart Irrigation Month and save water (Texas Water Resources Institute)
      http://twri.tamu.edu
    • Quantifying Connections – World-renowned Texas A&M researcher uses water, energy, food nexus to analyze resource problems near and far (Leslie Lee – Texas Water Resources Institute)
      http://twri.tamu.edu
  • 1 July
    • Wild animals in the city: It’s time to stop being surprised (Peter Alagona, University of California, Santa Barbara – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Texas A&M Forest Service employee receives prestigious Smokey Bear Award (The Gilmer Mirror)
      www.gilmermirror.com
    • Supreme Court decides against EPA on the Mercury and Air Toxics Standard (Adrian Shelley – airCurrent News)
      http://airalliancehouston.org
    • Houston’s HOV And HOT Lanes Are Staying Open Later (Gail Delaughter – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Rustic or Dangerous? Why Keeping Treated Wood Materials Indoors Can be a Bad Idea (Texas Clean Air Matters)
      http://blogs.edf.org
    • Pew survey: Most young Americans oppose offshore drilling, nuclear power (Fuel Fix)
      http://fuelfix.com
    • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Awards Grants to 35 States, District of Columbia for Work on Deadly Bat Disease (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service)
      www.fws.gov
    • SCOTUS gives polluters a win (Charles Kuffner – Off the Kuff)
      http://offthekuff.com
    • Chronic Wasting Disease found in Medina County deer (Conor Harrison – Lone Star Outdoor News)
      www.lsonews.com
    • New CO2 rules should aid Keystone XL approval, TransCanada says (Scott Haggett – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
    • U.S., Brazil pledge to raise renewable energy in power output (Jeff Mason and Valerie Volcovici – Planet Ark News)
      http://planetark.org
  • 30 June
    • Hanson: Texas flooding reveals our accidental pollution (Jenna Hanson – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Where Does the Trash on Houston Freeways Come From? (Maggie Martin – Houston Matters)
      www.houstonmatters.org
    • For Astronomers’ Sake, Some Drillers Cut Their Lights (Jim Malewitz – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • BP pledges $1 million to Student Conservation Association for local projects (Lauri Harvey Keagle – NWI Times)
      www.nwitimes.com
    • New data reveals which U.S. fracking wells needed the most water to drill (Joshua Cain – Fuel Fix)
      http://fuelfix.com
    • Nature Activities at Village Creek State Park
      Nature Activities at Village Creek State Park
    • Great Texas Birding Classic Awards $25,000 in Conservation Grants (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
  • 29 June
    • Growth poses new challenges to Jones State Forest (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
    • Houston Native Alison Weaver to Run Moody Center at Rice University (Rainey Knudson – Glasstire)
      http://glasstire.com
    • Protecting Jobs … Or People? Supreme Court Declares EPA Pollution Rule Illegal (Dave Fehling – Houston Public Media)
      www.houstonpublicmedia.org
    • Opinion: STOP Riding Like This! Ease the Impact of Mountain Biking on the Environment (Chris Daniels – Single Tracks)
      www.singletracks.com
    • City Faces Lawsuits Over Post Oak Bus Lanes and Drainage Fee (Michael Hagerty – Houston Matters)
      www.houstonmatters.org
    • Katy Prairie Conservancy to host range ride July 18 (Carol Brejot – Memorial Examiner)
      www.yourhoustonnews.com
    • Flooded Texas Homeowners Face Steep Costs to Rebuild (Mike Morris and Anita Hassan, Houston Chronicle – Emergency Management)
      www.emergencymgmt.com
    • Supreme Court Thwarts EPA Mercury Rules (Jim Malewitz and Neena Satija – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Texas Sues EPA Over Provision of Federal Water Law (Neena Satija – Trib+Water)
      www.texastribune.org
    • Lake Texoma Anglers Reminded of Regulations Prohibiting Moving of Baitfish (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
  • 28 June
    • Texas A&M developing technology to test water for fecal contaminants amid rash of stomach illnesses (Joshua Siegel – The Eagle)
      www.theeagle.com
  • 27 June
    • East End residents voice fears about the oil trains that surround them (Claudia Feldman – Houston Chronicle)
      www.chron.com
  • 26 June
    • “Operation Dry Water” Nationwide Boating Under the Influence Crackdown This Weekend in Texas (Texas Parks & Wildlife)
      http://tpwd.texas.gov
  • 24 June
    • USDA Launches Environmental Markets Website (USDA News)
      http://blogs.usda.gov
    • Water Environment Federation Announces New WEF Stormwater Institute (Water Environment Federation)
      www.wef.org
    • Rich Haut to receive SPE Distinguished Membership Award in September (HARC News)
      www.harcresearch.org
  • 23 June
    • What to do if you’re hit by a car while riding your bike (Greg Hanscom – Grist)
      http://grist.org
  • 22 June
  • 19 June

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