ENVIRONMENTAL HEADLINES MARCH 31 – APRIL 6
JUSTICES SAY E.P.A. HAS POWER TO ACT ON HARMFUL GASES
New York Times 4/2/07
WASHINGTON — In one of its most important environmental decisions in years, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the Environmental Protection Agency has the authority to regulate heat-trapping gases in automobile emissions. The court further ruled that the agency could not sidestep its authority to regulate the greenhouse gases that contribute to global climate change unless it could provide a scientific basis for its refusal.
US TOP COURT OVERTURNS DUKE CLEAN AIR LAW RULING
Reuters 4/3/07
WASHINGTON – A unanimous Supreme Court Monday overturned a lower court’s ruling that would have allowed utility Duke Energy Corp. to modernize aging coal-fired power plants without reducing air pollutants
GROUP SUES OVER HARRIS COUNTY FLOOD PLAIN MAPS
Houston Chronicle 4/1/07
An environmental group’s lawsuit threatens to derail, at least temporarily, the five-year remapping of Harris County’s flood plains, and rhetoric is rising on both sides.
HOUSTON SURVEY AGAIN SHOWS CRIME NO. 1 WORRY
Houston Chronicle 3/30/07
For the second consecutive year, crime eclipsed traffic and the economy as the perceived greatest problem in the Houston area, the 2007 Houston Area Survey shows.
GATOR HUNTING LAW RILES SOME RESIDENTS
Baytown Sun 4/2/07
It’s been called one of the great success stories of wildlife conservation. On the verge of extinction in the late 1960s, the American alligator is now off the endangered species list and eligible for hunting. Chambers County has between 40,000 and 50,000 gators, the highest total in the state, and about three times the number of humans who live in the county.
OPEN SEASON ON MONTGOMERY COUNTY GATORS
OFFICIALS WAITING TO SEE ABOUT DOLPHIN CRISIS
Galveston County Daily News 4/2/07
GALVESTON — A weeklong pause in the flow of dead dolphins washing up on Galveston County shores has officials cautiously optimistic, but reluctant to proclaim the crisis is over.
HELP SOUGHT TO CLEAN UP INDUSTRIAL WASTE SITE
Baytown Sun 3/30/07
Two local congressmen have requested assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency to clean up a long-forgotten industrial waste site along the San Jacinto River.
WILLIE NELSON TALKS ABOUT BIOFUELS, HIS NEW RECORD LABEL — AND HIS VERY OWN ICE CREAM
Conroe Bulletin 4/5/07
Does stopping at the gas pump fill you with dread? Or how about hitting the road this summer for a family vacation? Sure, the price of gasoline may ebb and flow a bit more these days, but still it is consistently sky high — and there’s no end in sight.
REVIEWS MIXED ON HIGHWAY 35 PLAN
Pearland Journal 4/04/2007
Texas Department of Transportation’s proposed 25- to 30-mile tollway from IH 45 downtown, following the train tracks and SH 35 through much of Pearland before ending at the south end of the Alvin bypass, drew mixed reviews at a public meeting March 28
GROUP TEACHES STUDENTS ABOUT PREDATORY BIRDS
Brazosport Facts 4/5/07
More than 500 children packed into the A.P. Beutel Elementary School cafeteria for Wednesday’s Birds of Prey program.