The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
Deep in the Panhandle, a groundwater district is running a closely watched demonstration project aimed at showing farmers how to use less irrigation water on their crops. As the Ogallala Aquifer drops, saving water is an increasingly urgent task. Full Story
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This month, the sole public water well in Barnhart went dry for nearly three days. Residents in the Permian Basin community say that the area's thriving fracking industry is important but that a proper balance must be struck. Full Story
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State Rep. Charlie Geren and leaders in the North Texas town of Blue Mound are upset that Gov. Rick Perry vetoed a bill that would have made it easier for the town to gain control of its water system. Full Story
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Citing concerns about eminent domain abuse and the potential contamination of water resources, a coalition is asking state lawmakers to conduct interim studies and hold public meetings on the issue of oil pipeline expansion. Full Story
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A panel of House lawmakers on Monday agreed to join other state officials in calling on the federal government to send additional aid to the small town of West, which was rocked in April by a massive plant explosion. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry issued more than two dozen vetoes Friday, including a line-item veto that wipes out funding for the Travis County prosecutors who investigate government fraud and public corruption. He also vetoed a bill that would have had Texas law mirror gender wage protections in the federal Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. Full Story
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As the drought continues to blanket most of the state, demands for water are increasing from a growing population and industrial base. These pressures are squeezing Texas waterways, whose average streamflow remains well below normal. Full Story
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Hotter days are back, and cities across Texas are again at risk of running out of water. Barnhart, a small community in West Texas, already ran out of water just this month. Use our redesigned interactive to track water systems at risk. Full Story
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Saying that Mexico is violating the terms of a 1944 water treaty, federal lawmakers from Texas filed legislation Monday that they hope will compel the United States' southern neighbor to meet its obligations. Full Story
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A water war between the U.S. and Mexico dominates headlines amid a record drought. But some experts caution that a larger issue is boiling beneath the surface: the mining of unregulated transnational aquifers. Full Story
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Abandoned oilfield equipment is a common problem in Texas, but some fear that the recent surge in hydraulic fracturing will set off worrisome new encounters with old wells. Full Story
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Bracken Cave, north of the burgeoning San Antonio metropolitan area, has been the summer home to the world's largest colony of bats for thousands of years. But conservationists worry a developer's plan threatens the bats. Full Story
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Barnhart, a small community about 50 miles southwest of San Angelo in West Texas, has run out of water after the town's only municipal water well failed. Officials say that the water demands of oil drilling are a factor. Full Story
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The Rio Grande Regional Water Authority has hired a PR firm to help urge the federal government to mandate that Mexico deliver water to the U.S. under a decades-old treaty. Legal experts say such conflicts would continue if the treaty isn't amended. Full Story
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Every summer night, a swirling vortex of Mexican free-tailed bats emerges from Bracken Cave, the largest such colony in the world. It's a sight the cave's protectors say is threatened by a developer's plans. Full Story
In Houston, air pollution worries usually are about ozone, but scientists are paying increasingly close attention to fine dust. It’s more dangerous than ozone, some say, and the EPA will soon decide whether Houston has too much. Full Story
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The city of Fort Worth has appointed a task force to see whether the city might save money by putting some of its water services in public-private partnerships. Experts say a number of issues could arise if such partnerships are instituted. Full Story
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Just as Gov. Rick Perry and lawmakers finalize plans to spend $2 billion on water-supply projects around the state, a court decision could force Texas to rethink its water-planning process. Full Story
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Gov. Rick Perry signed a major water infrastructure bill into law on May 28. Speaking to reporters afterward, he remained coy about his political future and wouldn't say if he will add any items to the special session agenda. Full Story
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There is plenty of action still to come on water after the legislative session, starting with a shake-up of the Water Development Board. In addition, all eyes will be on a November referendum asking voters to approve new water funds. Full Story
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