The latest energy news from The Texas Tribune.
Within a decade, Texas will lead the nation in sicknesses linked to ozone-forming pollutants from oil and gas activity, according to a new analysis from a pair of environmental groups released Wednesday. Full Story
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Texas regulators have allowed energy companies in recent years to inject toxic materials into at least a “handful” of underground sources of drinking water, records show. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: a new computer tool is designed to better forecast floods nationwide, waters highlighted during the Olympics are not alone in being polluted and questions surge after Louisiana floods. Full Story
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State lawmakers on Monday considered a host of recommendations to reshape and rename the Texas Railroad Commission, a powerful agency that oversees a host of oil and gas activities but not railroads. Full Story
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Federal regulators believe “there is a significant possibility” that a recent surge in North Texas earthquakes is linked to oil and gas activity, even if state regulators won’t say so. Full Story
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A state appeals court has struck down a plastic bag ban in Laredo in a high-profile fight over local control that could ultimately impact similar laws in other Texas cities. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: The Ogallala aquifer is being drained away, a coral reef off the Texas coast is the scene of a mass marine life die-off and an interview with Paul Choules of the Texas Desalination Association. Full Story
Laredo residents are protesting a proposed landfill that they say will make their community a dumping ground for toxic waste from across the United States and Mexico. Full Story
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Texas is again taking the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to court, this time challenging new rules aimed at slashing methane emissions in the oil patch. Full Story
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Florida-based NextEra Energy has unveiled an $18.4 billion deal to buy Oncor, Texas' largest electric transmission company. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: Paving over wetlands around Houston raise risk of flooding, more worries about contaminated water sources and an interview with David Todd of the Conservation History Association of Texas. Full Story
Three years after Texas filed a complaint in the U.S. Supreme Court alleging that New Mexican farmers were illegally curbing the Rio Grande's flow into Texas, the justices appear closer to taking up the challenge. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: An El Paso Water Utilities purchase of a ranch stirs concerns about water exports, algae blooms hint at systems out of balance across the globe and an interview with Greg Story of the National Weather Service West Gulf River Forecast Center. Full Story
A recent study has thrust the Wink Sinks — two breathtaking sinkholes in Winkler County which have long been objects of fear and fascination — into the national spotlight. Full Story
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Donna Nelson, who chairs the Texas Public Utility Commission, is trying to crack down on deceptive electricity providers and make it easier for Texans to shop for electricity. Full Story
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The state’s environmental regulatory agency on Wednesday rebuffed a coalition of border residents and environmental activists who hoped to halt a coal mine from expanding its operations near the Rio Grande. Full Story
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The oil bust is threatening to deal a serious financial blow to schools in oil-producing regions across the state — particularly if it lingers. Full Story
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and his Alabama counterpart have dropped their legal bid to squelch a U.S. Virgin Islands investigation of Exxon Mobil after the U.S. territory agreed to with draw a subpoena for company documents. Full Story
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In this week's edition of the Trib+Water newsletter: New opportunities for water utilities to promote conservation, a new water quality study of the Pedernales River and an interview with Chelsea A.J. Hawkins of the Alliance for Water Efficiency. Full Story
On Tuesday, lawyers for Laredo merchants argued the city's plastic bag ban conflicts with state law. The case has become a flashpoint in a roiling debate over the limits of local control, and the ruling could strike bag bans across Texas. Full Story