The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
At Monday's TribLive conversation, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Chairman Bryan Shaw and James Marston of the Environmental Defense Fund talked about the causes and implications of last week's tragedy in West. Full Story
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As investigators search for the cause of the explosion, environmentalists said that the situation highlighted lax regulations in Texas for plants handling dangerous chemicals — especially those located near schools. Full Story
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The day after an explosion at a fertilizer plant leveled parts of the Central Texas town of West, officials are still searching for answers about the tragedy that has left at least five people dead. Full Story
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With about 90 percent of Texas still weathering drought conditions, climate experts say tropical storm and hurricane landfall could be the best hope to get rain to parts of Texas that will desperately need it this summer. Full Story
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Friendliness toward the drilling industry is typical in Texas, where many lawmakers receive campaign contributions from oil and gas groups or have investments in drilling companies. Full Story
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UPDATED: Railroad Commission Chairman Barry Smitherman apologized on Friday for retweeting an image that showed a noose beside the names of Republican U.S. senators who had voted down a gun-control filibuster. Full Story
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The Texas House on Thursday voted to formally ask the U.S. State Department to apply pressure on the Mexican government to release water owed to Texas under the terms of a treaty signed in 1944. Full Story
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The full Texas Senate will consider a plan to spend about half of the projected $11.8 billion balance in the state's Rainy Day Fund for transportation and water projects, though Democrats plan to push for money for schools as well. Full Story
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Across the U.S., drillers are finding shale formations they hope could become the next big oil play for the American energy industry. But hype over emerging oil fields, like Texas' Cline Shale, has highlighted worries about drilling companies' intentions. Full Story
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In a letter to President Obama on Tuesday, Gov. Rick Perry urged the federal government to press Mexico to release more water to Texas under the terms of a 1944 treaty. Full Story
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In a state fabled for its everything-is-bigger mentality, the idea of conserving resources is taking hold. Texas political and business leaders have realized that no water equals no business. Full Story
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This slideshow shows various images from a far east El Paso community where a proposed power plant near a colonia has spurred some residents to mobilize in opposition. Full Story
Texas deer breeders say that excessive oversight from Texas Parks and Wildlife is constraining their industry. Supported by the Texas Deer Association, several bills would make major changes to deer breeding across the state. Full Story
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Amid continued worries about reservoir levels statewide, several Texas communities are exploring the concept of underground storage reservoirs, which do not lose water to evaporation or flood agricultural land. Full Story
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Should groundwater districts be allowed to require permits for drilling companies wanting to withdraw water for hydraulic fracturing? Oil companies oppose the idea, and on Tuesday, the Senate Natural Resources Committee debated the issue. Full Story
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Use our interactive map to see more than 7,000 sites across Texas where wastewater from oil and gas operations is being disposed of. Enter your ZIP code to find disposal wells near you. Full Story
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This week in the Newsreel: The Legislature makes progress on key education and water bills; Rep. Ron Reynolds, D-Missouri City, is busted for barratry; and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst bares his partisan teeth. Full Story
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As the water-intensive practice of fracking continues to spread, the amount of wastewater being buried in disposal wells around Texas has skyrocketed. But the wells bring concerns about truck traffic and the possibility of groundwater contamination. Full Story
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In drilling regions like the Permian Basin, where the water needs of fracking have run up against a historic drought, drillers are increasingly turning to brackish groundwater previously thought too expensive to use. Full Story
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Most fracking operations use several million gallons of water. But with water increasingly scarce and costly around Texas, a few companies have begun using alternative liquids, such as propane. Experts say the technology still has far to go. Full Story
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