Store, harvest, fix: How Texas can save its water supply
State lawmakers are poised to devote billions to save the state’s water supply. These are some of the ways the state could spend the money. Full Story
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![Treated water at the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 in Austin, TX. The treatment plant will undergo a billion dollar expansion starting this summer to meet the increasing demand due to the growth the city has faced. Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
West Texas lawmakers push bills to divert some oil and gas taxes to help oil-producing counties with roads, other needs
Reps. Tom Craddick and Brooks Landgraf want to divert 10% of taxes collected on oil and gas production to help budget-strapped counties keep up with growth. Full Story
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![Truckers line up to receive a load of sand, used in oil and gas fracking, at the Capital Sand plant Monday, July 1, 2024, outside of Monahans.]()
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An abandoned West Texas oil well has created a 200-foot-wide sinkhole
The rapidly-growing sinkhole in Upton County is the latest of many problems caused by old wells in the Permian Basin. Full Story
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![A sinkhole formed by an old oil well on the Kelton Ranch in Upton County, Texas, has grown rapidly in the past year.]()
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Want to understand Texas’ water crisis? Start with the guide to water terms.
Water is complex. So are the terms used to describe it. Get to know the language as Texas debates how to save its water supply. Full Story
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![The secondary clarifier at the Bustamante Waste Water Treatment Plant expansion in El Paso on March 5, 2025.]()
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Texas is running out of water. Here’s why and what state leaders plan to do about it.
The state’s water supply faces numerous threats. And by one estimate, the state’s municipal supply will not meet demand by 2030 if there’s a severe drought and no water solutions are implemented. Full Story
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![Water gushes from Rick Bradbury’s truck to Shannon Montague’s reservoir as the Bradbury’s make a delivery Saturday, March 16, 2024 in Terlingua.]()
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A Republican effort to set deadlines to plug orphan wells in Texas hits resistance
The bill would have set deadlines for the oil and gas industry to plug inactive wells, which can pose a danger to the environment. Full Story
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![A pump jack and a gas flare in the Eagle Ford oil patch south of San Antonio.]()
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Join us May 8 in Dallas or online for a conversation about preparing the power grid for the future economy
We’ll look at what’s needed for a dramatic increase in demand on the grid and the state’s power infrastructure. Full Story
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With Texas facing soaring electricity demand, the politics of energy quietly shift at the Capitol
The Legislature has tried to clamp down on renewable energy resources in the past, but many lawmakers are recognizing the need to support all types of generation to meet record demand growth. Full Story
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![Vistra Corp.’s Midlothian Power Plant opened its doors to media on October 15, 2021 to show the plant’s weatherization process. The Midlothian plant managed to avoid freezing during the Winter Storm Uri in February, and Vistra’s plants provided 25-30% of electricity on the grid during the storm despite its approximately 18% share of generation capacity in ERCOT.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
U.S. Supreme Court takes up Texas nuclear waste disposal case
The case could establish the nation’s first independent repository for spent nuclear fuel in West Texas, despite the objections of state leaders. Full Story
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![The entrance to the Waste Control Specialists site where radioactive and hazardous waste is being stored on Jan. 17, 2021.]()
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ERCOT approves $54 million plan to move CenterPoint’s mobile generators to San Antonio
All Texans connected to the state grid will now pay for the generators rather than just CenterPoint customers. Full Story
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![The ERCOT Board of Directors convene for a meeting at the organization's headquarters in Austin on Dec. 3, 2024.]()
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Texas wants to lead development of new type of nuclear power
The state is aggressively pushing to deploy the next generation of atomic energy that would power big industrial operations. Full Story
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![Rusty Towell, the founding director of Abilene Christian University's Nuclear Energy Experimental Testing, describes the workings of a molten salt testing device installed in the NEXT lab in Bennett Gymnasium at Abilene Christian University on April 8, 2021.]()
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In Odessa, multiple efforts are underway to help immigrants stay and work
A naturalized citizen, along with other business leaders, are working to create new resources for undocumented people living in the Permian Basin. Full Story
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![Miriam Guzmán, left, and Theresa Servin pose for a photo on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025, in Odessa.]()
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Feds OK another deepwater oil export terminal off Texas
The terminal continues an oil export infrastructure buildout that pushes growth in U.S. oil production as momentum fades on a phase-out of fossil fuels. Full Story
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![A ship is loaded with crude oil on Sept. 11, 2023 in Corpus Christi.]()
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As Texas’ energy demand soars, a pilot program looks to bolster grid with “virtual power plants” fueled by people’s homes
Some Texans who install residential batteries, solar panels and smart thermostats can now send power back to the grid and get a credit on their bill. Full Story
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![A monitoring room at the Bandera Electric Cooperative tech campus in Boerne, Texas on January 30, 2025.]()
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Large earthquake strikes West Texas, among strongest ever in state
The 5.0 magnitude earthquake is tied for the sixth strongest in state history. Scientists have warned for years that increased fracking in West Texas is causing higher earthquake activity. Full Story
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![A drilling rig in Pecos County on Feb. 4, 2023.]()
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Texas’ energy demand may exceed supply in 2026, but experts caution against panic
Some experts are skeptical the grid would see as much demand growth as ERCOT predicts, and other ERCOT models showed things getting tight but not tipping into a deficit. Full Story
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![Air conditioning units at the Oak Timbers apartment complex in Fort Worth on Sept. 9, 2023.]()
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Project 2025 adviser takes the reins at EPA region including Texas
Scott Mason IV, a former deputy energy secretary for Oklahoma and member of the Cherokee nation, is the new administrator for the region that covers Texas and four neighboring states. Full Story
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![An operational pumpjack neighbors a trailer home in Gardendale on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022.]()
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Why oil and gas companies want state oversight for carbon dioxide injection
Environmentalists are worried the state — known for a lax approach to regulation — is not prepared for the added responsibility of regulating certain carbon capture projects. Full Story
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Once the carbon dioxide is captured, the gas is compressed and transported, usually through pipelines, to a storage location, which is later injected into deep underground rock formations where it can be permanently stored.
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Petra Nova CCS Facility at NRG Power Plant in Richmond on May 18, 2018.]()
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Texas Republicans want more property tax cuts. Here’s how they may do it.
Gov. Greg Abbott said cutting taxes is a top priority, however, state lawmakers don’t have as much money to plug into tax cuts as they did two years ago. Full Story
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![A residential neighborhood seen Saturday, Aug. 10, 2024, in Midland.]()
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Texas regulators grapple with a growing problem: old oil wells leaking polluted water
Two years after lawmakers created a $10 million program to address leaking wells in rural counties, none of the money has been distributed. Full Story
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![Hawk Dunlap stands at the site of Lake Boehmer, a brine lake that has leaked out of an old well in Pecos County.]()
Credit: Pu Ying Huang/The Texas Tribune