This summer is on track to be among Texas’ most extreme
June was only the 16th-warmest on record in Texas, but a mid-month heatwave brought an unusually high number of 100-degree days. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/eb2ab2462746d8780ca0c20701a2088c/Heat%20File%20SS%20TT%2001.jpg)
-
![TxDOT employee Brad Shepard sweeps the road shoulder clean of the asphalt cold mix he put down while doing edge repairs on Interstate 35 in Austin on August 19th, 2013.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge for the Texas Tribune -
At a shuttered Texas coal mine, a 1-acre garden is helping feed 2,000 people per month
The garden in the middle of a 35,000-acre former mine is supplying thousands of pounds of fresh produce to families in three counties that have few grocery stores. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/42ceb878f4994d7db1cd41b9cc7aa2f7/0629%20Mine%20to%20Garden%20JT%20TT%2003.JPG)
![From left: Ava Moore, 18; Caleb Rappolee, 17; Pera Taylor, 11; and Salaya Henderson, 11, volunteer gardeners, pick fresh onions at the Dewey Prairie Garden in Donie on June 29, 2023. The Dewey Prairie Garden is a pilot program that practices the final stages of NRG Jewett Mine’s environmental reclamation process that takes on average 12 years from start to finish.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Company confirms it has found new funding to build a massive gas terminal at the Port of Brownsville
Brownsville is the last major deepwater port in Texas that doesn’t have large fossil fuel projects. The 750-acre facility will export Texas natural gas to other countries. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a6da49b10eb5b4f4e44d62226d9004bb/Rio%20Grande%20LNG%20ICN%20PYH%20TT%2001.jpg)
![The Boca Chica Wildlife Refuge on the Rio Grande delta, about six miles east of the proposed 750-acre site of the Rio Grande LNG facility.]()
Credit: Dylan Baddour/Inside Climate News -
A Comal County ranch owner ponders selling his land, setting off another clash between property rights and environmental concerns
When the owner applied for a state permit that could pave the way for a subdivision, neighbors and environmentalists rallied against it in the name of protecting the area’s rivers and the Edwards Aquifer. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ca3efeb49b399a2c13db3d04fde08bed/0616%20Comal%20County%20JT%20TT%2053.jpg)
![A car drives by Doug Harrison’s property in Comal County nearly halfway between New Braunfels and Bulverde, on June 16, 2023. Harrison’s application for a wastewater treatment plant on his 500-plus-acre plot of land in Comal County stirred controversy as residents have raised environmental concerns.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Limited regulations make Texas workers responsible for preventing on-the-job heat injuries
In triple-digit temperatures, drinking water frequently and resting in the shade are minimum safety measures for avoiding injuries and deaths. But they are not applied to every job site. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d77ee1a3a48d2d7ab08d807edea367d1/0706%20Heat%20Construction%20Features%20JT%20TT%2004.jpg)
![Martin Capallera, 50, a construction employee, throws on his neon vest and slips on his neck gaiter after taking a break in his car while working in the late morning heat in Austin’s West Campus neighborhood on July 6, 2023. Capallera specializes in rewiring buildings and currently works on the 24th floor of a new building on W. 21st Street and San Antonio. “We try to keep our people safe,” Capallera said. “We’re all the time under the sun.”]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Essay: Extreme heat is threatening corn in South Texas — and the state’s food supply
The crop, a staple of the fertile Rio Grande Valley, is particularly susceptible to rising temperatures. It’s also a global challenge, as climate change drives food insecurity. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3db79b2dd390b5182f6e95534ada3fc7/Corn%20in%20South%20Texas%20VC%20TT%2012.jpg)
![Alexis Racelis, an environmental scientist at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, at the Hub of Prosperity Farm in Edinburg on July 9, 2023. The farm is an urban farm partnership between Edinburg First United Methodist Church and the university’s agroecology department.]()
Credit: Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
TribCast: Extreme heat and the toll of climate change on Texas
In this week’s episode, we speak with The Texas Tribune’s climate reporter Erin Douglas about why it’s been so hot in Texas and examine the long-term implications as climate change shifts the entire range of Texas heat upward. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/7db9ec088fa8114425225d824c433cf6/0707%20TribCast%20Heat%20TT.jpg)
![Jackson Maniradukunda, 20, runs sprints while working out in the early morning at Yellow Jacked Stadium at Eastside Early College High School in Austin on June 28, 2023.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Deer Park chemical fire in 2019 could have been prevented, federal investigation finds
The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board found that the ITC tank farm lacked crucial equipment to warn workers about the failure that led to the three-day fire. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/49358b6491920bc76dba804cd9550bc3/ITC%20Fire%20-%20EPA.jpg)
![Firefighters struggle to extinguish the towering flames pouring out of ITC’s tank 80-8 on the afternoon of March 17, 2019. The fire would blow through the entire “2nd 80’s” section of the facility.]()
Credit: Courtesy of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency -
Emergency room visits surge, Texans die amid dangerous heat wave
After weeks of extreme heat, health officials have reported numerous deaths, while emergency departments across the state are seeing record numbers of people seeking treatment for heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/83f7063e86bc291919d2fc6f35815806/2023-06-27T033136Z_1576890502_RC28R1ASD79A_RTRMADP_3_USA-WEATHER.JPG)
![Firefighter EMT William Dorsey lifts a migrant woman suffering from heat exhaustion onto a stretcher in the border community of Eagle Pass, Texas on June 26, 2023.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Kaylee Greenlee Beal -
Federal investigation faults Houston company in 2020 explosion that killed three people
The explosion at a machine shop damaged hundreds of nearby homes. Investigators found that flammable gas leaked into the building and was ignited by a light switch. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/7ac9c95ac41da98d86027937494d4d57/Watson%20Grinding%20Explosion%20REUTERS.jpg)
![Fransisco Castrejon, 62, stands inside his house, damaged by a warehouse explosion nearby in Houston, on Jan. 24, 2020. A massive explosion occurred at Watson Grinding & Manufacturing in Northeast Houston in the early hours and affected nearby homes.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Go Nakamura -
Climate change has sent temperatures soaring in Texas
Hotter days and nights. More record highs. Climate change has shifted the entire range of Texas heat upwards. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ebaf12a2f0faaaa362b8e7cc6da65a54/Cotton%20Drought%20JR%20TT%2005.jpg)
![Cotton plants grow in a field while a dust storm blows ahead of a late summer thunderstorm Monday, Aug. 29, 2022, in Terry County, Texas. (Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune)]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
At least four people killed after tornado hits Matador, a small town outside Lubbock
The city of about 800 also suffered extensive property damage and power outages. Crews were still assessing the full scope of destruction Thursday, and Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/61e7fa57993fc43c7373337556980dd6/0622%20Matador%20Tornado%20MR%20TT%2015.jpg)
![From left, Tyne Marshall sits on the ground next to Brett Homer and Cambrie Marshall, grand daughters of Ken and Mary Marshall, sho survives the tornado. Emergency personnel and Matador townspeople sift through the rubble Thursday morning, June 22, 2013, left after a tornado devastated the small town Wednesday night.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
In tornado’s aftermath, Perryton residents refuse to see their town wiped from the map
Three people died, and part of the remote Panhandle town was destroyed. Its residents immediately set forth on the long road to recovery. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/21ac2972cd4c5b665385e1329fa5620b/Perryton%20Tornado%20REUTERS%20TT%2002.jpg)
![A tornado left buildings significantly damaged and homes leveled in Perryton on Thursday, June 15, 2023. At least three people were confirmed dead and dozens others injured.]()
Credit: Alex Driggars/Amarillo Globe-News/USA TODAY NETWORK via REUTERS -
Texas cities set temperature records amid relentless heat wave
Corpus Christi logged a heat index of 125 degrees at one point in the past week, as Laredo, Del Rio, San Angelo and Junction also set new highs. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/9a69682a8173436a0ead035a51b25567/2022-07-13T121303Z_571690834_RC2IAV9LUMKS_RTRMADP_3_TEXAS-POWER-ERCOT.JPG)
![Utility poles lead to downtown Dallas during a heat advisory in Dallas on July 12, 2022.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Shelby Tauber -
Texas farmers are worried one of the state’s most precious water resources is running dry. You should be, too.
The Ogallala Aquifer serves farming communities in multiple states. When it runs dry, the agriculture industry in Texas and the nation is in jeopardy. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/31c207dd7b2ccf3f36e71d4e2f0da7e4/0113%20Well%20Measurements%20MR%20TT%2009.jpg)
![Field Technician Supervisor Billy Barron uses e-line water level meter to check the level of a water well in a pecan orchard in Lubbock County. Barron was checking water levels near the at the High Plains Underground Water Conservation office Friday, Dec. 13, 2023.]()
Credit: Mark Rogers for The Texas Tribune -
Swaths of East Texas without power amid a heat wave after severe storms
Some Texans may have to wait a week for their power to be restored during a period of extreme heat and humidity. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/721ef8b97df07f2f8e617678bd27f938/CCR_9836.jpg)
![Longview High School - Earlier this year the 1970 federal segregation order was lifted for Longview ISD.]()
Credit: Callie Richmond for The Texas Tribune -
“This is pretty devastating”: Three dead, more than 100 injured after tornado strikes Perryton
More than 100 people were injured in the tornado that hit the Panhandle town. Gov. Greg Abbott sent emergency crews to assist with recovery efforts. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6039b1b2ba3d35caf827fe0557a1010e/2023-06-16T133648Z_53902813_MT1USATODAY20901271_RTRMADP_3_A-TORNADO-LEFT-BUILDINGS-SIGNIFICANTLY-DAMAGED-AND-HOMES.JPG)
![A tornado left buildings significantly damaged and homes leveled in Perryton, Texas Thursday evening, June 15, 2023. At least three people were confirmed dead and dozens others injured.]()
Credit: Alex Driggars/USA TODAY NETWORK via Reuters Connect -
State environmental agency proposes new rules for concrete plants in Texas
The TCEQ has proposed changes to concrete batch plant permits including lowering production limits, reducing dust coming from plants and setting minimum distance requirements from nearby communities. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/63431d411d0b34eff142dc79f94d0514/TCEQ%20Complaint%20Gunter%20ST%20TT%2005.jpg)
![A concrete truck is washed at a concrete batch plant in Gunter, TX on March 21, 2023.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department opts for eminent domain to save Fairfield Lake State Park
With only three days left on the state’s lease, the agency unanimously voted to condemn almost 5,000 acres in Freestone County in an effort to keep the park open to the public after developers purchased the property to build a gated community. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d4770a518ef4b9d9f6ce58be71f6a687/0227%20Fairfield%20Lake%20SP%20EG%2006.jpg)
![State Park Police Officer Kyle Ware makes the rounds at Fairfield Lake State Park in Fairfield on Feb. 27, 2023.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas sues EPA over federal smog control plan
The lawsuit claims the Environmental Protection Agency exceeded its authority with its plan to reduce ozone emissions that cross state lines. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/01054246555fec02b69210766bc5d8e3/San%20Antonio%20Power%20Plant%20SP%20TT%2003.jpg)
![Smoke from a power plant in San Antonio on Aug. 4, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune