New in Trib+Water: The Disappearing Rio Grande
In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: The Disappearing Rio Grande project, reckoning with water shortages and an interview with Karen Ford of WaterPR. Full Story
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The Brief: July 16, 2014
Greg Abbott's disclosure that he has close to $36 million in the bank as the campaign for governor starts to kick into high gear dominated a day where he and his Democratic rival Wendy Davis posted big fundraising numbers. Full Story
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![Gubernatorial candidates Greg Abbott and Wendy Davis are shown on primary night on March 4, 2014.]()
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As Debate Continues Over EPA Plan, Utilities Say They're Getting Prepared
A federal plan to slash emissions from coal-fired power plants remains a source of deep division. But a number of utilities say their investments in natural gas and renewable energy sources have left them well-positioned to meet their potential carbon targets. Full Story
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![The Webberville Solar Project near Austin.]()
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Video: Ship Channel Fueling Industry, Debate
The Houston Ship Channel has grown in recent years and is now one of the world's most important transportation waterways. But some scientists argue the bustling channel could be vulnerable to what they say are the effects of climate change. Full Story
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Credit: Alana Rocha -
Video: Ship Channel Fueling Industry, Debate
The Houston Ship Channel has grown in recent years and is now one of the world's most important transportation waterways. But some scientists argue the bustling channel could be vulnerable to what they say are the effects of climate change. Full Story
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Credit: Alana Rocha -
The Brief: July 15, 2014
A bipartisan effort by two Texas lawmakers — GOP U.S. Sen. John Cornyn and Democratic U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar — grabbed headlines as having the potential to break the logjam as to what to do about the surge in unaccompanied minors across the border. Full Story
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![U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) speaks with state Rep. Doug Miller R-New Braunfels, during a visit to the Texas Capitol on Feb. 19, 2013.]()
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Water Planners Focus on a More Populous Texas, but Not a Hotter One
As state water planners prepare to spend $2 billion in public funds to address Texas’ water needs in the coming decades, scientists say state leaders' skepticism on climate change will only impair such planning. Full Story
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![Scientists say higher temperatures due to global warming are already diminishing water resources, and that climate change will cause the southern and western portions of the state to become drier. Those regions supply water for fast-growing cities like Austin, San Antonio and Dallas, as well as the Rio Grande Valley.]()
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The Brief: July 14, 2014
The challenges to Republican-drawn maps in 2011 return to a San Antonio federal courtroom Monday morning with The Associated Press reporting that the U.S. Department of Justice is deciding to become more closely involved with the case. Full Story
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Climate Scientists: Texas is Missing an Opportunity
Texas-based climate scientists say that Texas could be a global leader in protecting against climate change. But if state agencies continue to fail to take climate change into account when planning for the state’s future, the scientists argue, Texans will suffer a direct impact. Full Story
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![Texas remains one of the most significant contributors to global warming in the world. Year after year, Texas spews out more greenhouse gases than any other state in the country.]()
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State to San Antonio: No, You Can't Own Your Wastewater
Several months after San Antonio Water System's bold move to secure ownership of its treated sewer water even after it gets released back into a public waterway, state regulators are saying they doubt that's possible. Full Story
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![San Antonio Bay is home to the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, where endangered whooping cranes live. The water that flows into the bay from the San Antonio River is vital to the species' survival.]()
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With Lamb-scaping Crew, Texas Solar Farm Aims to Shave Maintenance Costs
Operators of a 45-acre San Antonio solar farm have turned to sheep – not lawnmowers – as a low-cost, low-effort way to control overgrown shrubbery that might otherwise impede the company’s technicians. Full Story
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![Sheep wander between rows of solar panels at at a 4.4-megawatt solar farm in northeast San Antonio. OCI Solar Power, the farm's operator, uses the sheep – and their voracious appetites – to maintain shrubbery on the 45-acre site.]()
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The Brief: July 10, 2014
In the end, University of Texas at Austin President Bill Powers will get his graceful exit. Full Story
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BP Wants Unspent Spill Recovery Money Back
Nearly four years after BP awarded Gov. Rick Perry's office $5 million for recovery projects in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, most of the money remains unspent. Now, the company is asking Texas for its money back. Full Story
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Manufacturing Giant's Water Woes a Sign of What's to Come
Dow Chemical's struggles to secure enough water supplies for its growing operations in Texas have sparked concerns about whether the state's diminishing natural resources can accommodate its exploding population and economy. Full Story
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![Construction at the DOW chemical plant along the Brazos River in Freeport on July 9, 2012.]()
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The Brief: July 7, 2014
University of Texas at Austin President Bill Powers has asked for a chance at a "graceful" departure from his post after next year's legislative session. Full Story
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![The nine University of Texas System presidents led by UT-Austin President Bill Powers appear at the committee meeting on May 14, 2014.]()
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T-Squared: A Journey on the Disappearing Rio Grande
Colin McDonald is traveling the length of the Rio Grande — on foot and kayak — to document its ongoing disappearing act. We're excited to follow McDonald on this voyage and to support this unique journalistic endeavor. Full Story
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The Disappearing Rio Grande Expedition
The Rio Grande's future has never been more uncertain. Reporter Colin McDonald and photojournalist Erich Schlegel are traveling the river's length, documenting its culture and its biology from the Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of Mexico. Full Story
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In Its Fight With Drought, Wichita Falls Considers Using Chemical for Relief
Desperate to keep the precious little water left in its reservoirs, the city of Wichita Falls may turn to an "evaporation suppressant" chemical for help. Full Story
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![The decreasing water line on Lake Arrowhead, one of three lakes the city of Wichita Falls gets its water from, is pictured here on Jan. 25, 2013.]()
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New in Trib+Water: Watershed and Aquifer Protection
In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: the Lege talks watershed protections, Prop 6 funding system announced and an interview with Blair Fitzsimons of the Texas Agricultural Land Trust. Full Story
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The Brief: July 2, 2014
Lawmakers had a busy Tuesday, with the safe storage of ammonium nitrate and the alleged influence of criminal cartels in the current immigration crisis among the topics addressed. Full Story
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![L to R: Larry Phillips (R) Sherman and Joe Pickett (D) El Paso during the Transportation and the 83rd Legislature section of The Texas Tribune's symposium held on the SMU campus.]()
Credit: Mark Graham
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