Texas sues company behind Deer Park terminal fire
Attorney General Ken Paxton filed an environmental lawsuit against Intercontinental Terminals late Friday seeking tens of thousands of dollars in damages. Full Story
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Kiah Collier
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Kiah Collier was a reporter for the ProPublica-Texas Tribune investigative initiative from 2020 through 2023. She previously worked at the Tribune as a reporter and associate editor, covering energy and the environment through the lens of state government and politics. Kiah has reported for numerous other publications across Texas since 2010, including the Austin American-Statesman and the Houston Chronicle. Her beats also have included government and politics, public education and business. Kiah’s work has been honored with numerous prizes, including a George Foster Peabody Award, a Gerald Loeb Award, the Knight-Risser Prize for Western Environmental Journalism, the National Edward R. Murrow Award for best investigation and the AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award. A seventh-generation Texan, she grew up in the Austin area and graduated with high honors from the University of Texas at Austin with degrees in journalism and philosophy.
Past Contributions
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![Smoke rises from a fire burning at the Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, east of Houston on March 18, 2019.]()
Credit: Jaimie Meldrum/Handout via REUTERS -
Texas Senate approves $1.8 billion package to assist with Harvey recovery, guard against future storms
The upper chamber cast three, 31-0 votes on Wednesday to approve disaster recovery and preparedness legislation that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick named a top priority. Full Story
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![The neighborhood along Buffalo Bayou just below Barker Reservoir dam in Houston on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2017.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Deer Park terminal fire extinguished after three days of burning
A fire that broke out Sunday morning at a petrochemical storage facility in the industrial Houston suburb stopped burning overnight. Full Story
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![A thick layer of smoke hangs in the air from a fire burning at the Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, east of Houston, Texas, U.S., March 18, 2019.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Loren Elliott -
State regulators: No 'immediate health concerns' from Deer Park terminal fire
In a statement Monday afternoon, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said air quality monitoring "had not detected any immediate health concerns at ground level" amid a multi-tank fire at a petrochemical storage facility near Houston. Full Story
![Smoke rises from a fire burning at the Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, east of Houston on March 18, 2019.]()
Credit: Jaimie Meldrum/Handout via REUTERS -
Legal experts: Emergency declaration may not be quickest way to build wall
Even if President Donald Trump gets his way, eminent domain lawyers say a variety of legal issues would arise surrounding private land seizures that could delay wall construction for years — and even derail it entirely. Full Story
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![Juan Cavazos at his home on Oklahoma Avenue in Brownsville, Texas. The federal government took part of the former teacher's land to build the border fence.]()
Credit: Martin do Nascimento for The Texas Tribune -
Texas Senate leaders unveil $1.8 billion package of disaster relief bills
In the first session since Hurricane Harvey, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and three top senators are pushing a legislative package aimed at preparing the state for natural disasters. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Senators Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham and Charles Perry, R-Lubbock, hold a press conference to announce the filing of Senate bills 6, 7, and 8. Mar. 6, 2019.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
GOP senator, oil industry clash over proposed eminent domain reforms
At a public hearing on Monday, state Sen. Lois Kolkhorst — who has long tried to strengthen protections for landowners facing condemnation — challenged officials from fossil fuel groups who said her latest legislation would drag down energy production. Full Story
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![Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, at a state Senate Committee on Nominations hearing for Texas Secretary of State David Whitley on Feb. 7, 2019. Whitley was appointed to the job by Gov. Greg Abbott, but Whitley must first clear the committee, then win a two-thirds vote in the full Texas Senate.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr. / The Texas Tribune -
How will Texas help Harvey-ravaged communities?
State leaders have all thrown support behind tapping the rainy day fund to help with Hurricane Harvey recovery. But a year and a half after the storm, they haven't offered many specifics. Full Story
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![Debris from Hurricane Harvey is piled high at the Pines Condominiums near the Buffalo Bayou in the Memorial area of Houston on Sept. 13, 2017.]()
Credit: Michael Stravato for The Texas Tribune -
Gov. Abbott, other Texas officials urge feds to clear way for Harvey money
The state has been waiting a year for the federal government to set rules for how $4.3 billion in disaster recovery grants can be spent. Full Story
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![A man walks through floodwaters after surveying his property in Rockport, which was hit by Hurricane Harvey, on Saturday, Aug. 26, 2017.]()
Credit: REUTERS/Adrees Latif -
Report: Unauthorized air pollution in Texas up 27 percent in 2017
An analysis by the research arm of Environment Texas found that 275 companies across the state reported emitting 63 million pounds of hazardous and climate-warming pollutants from their facilities in 2017. Full Story
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![Sign indicating the presence of poison gas in Pecos County, Texas.]()
Credit: Marjorie Kamys Cotera for The Texas Tribune