The latest energy news from The Texas Tribune.
A fire broke out at a Deer Park Shell plant the day after a public hearing on renewing the permit for ITC, a nearby facility that caught fire in 2019, sparking a Texas Tribune/Public Health Watch investigation that documented failures in state and federal oversight. Full Story
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Recent “upsets” like tripped compressors, pressure loss and freezing weather resulted in thousands of pounds of unauthorized pollution but no fines or citations from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Full Story
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An estimated 500,000 people live in thousands of colonias along the Texas-Mexico border. Largely built between the 1950s and 1980s, these communities have been promised water — but it has never come. Full Story
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Water agencies have long resisted working together out of fear of losing their local powers. But an example from Florida could help save the Lone Star State’s water and infrastructure. Full Story
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Public Utility Commission Chair Peter Lake said renewable energy could be critical to preventing power outages this summer. Renewable energy supporters said the grid’s reliability doesn’t hinge on wind and solar. Full Story
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Texas has more than 7,000 water systems. A fraction of them self-reported that they lost 30 billion gallons of water due to broken pipes and leaks in 2021. Full Story
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The Texas Tribune analyzed previously unreported air monitoring data and records from the 2019 ITC chemical disaster near Houston and found that high benzene levels lingered in the air for two weeks after public health measures were lifted. Experts say more shelter-in-place advisories should have been issued. Full Story
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There were no people on board the rocket that took off from South Texas on Thursday morning. SpaceX officials said the incident will still inform the company’s future flights. Full Story
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In Franklin County, a group of locals are concerned about potential environmental harm from renewable energy facilities and support a bill that would impose more regulations on solar and wind. The industry says it’s being unfairly singled out. Full Story
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The plants would be activated during emergencies. Lawmakers haven’t decided whether to pay for them through state funds or higher charges to electricity customers. Full Story
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Critics say the bills could lead to untold billions in added costs to customers and minimal benefits while ignoring needed efforts to reduce electricity demand. Full Story
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Two bills would form the foundation for companies to build more electric vehicle charging stations across the state, supporters say. Full Story
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Gonzalez and Cuellar both represent oil and gas workers in South Texas and expressed misgivings about the Inflation Reduction Act, their party’s climate package last year. Full Story
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A new report from a public health watchdog found that more than 40,000 pounds of PFAS has been injected into more than 1,000 wells across Texas — and warned that the chemicals could pose a risk to public health Full Story
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The actions by the Public Utility Commission led to billions of dollars of overcharges, the Austin-based court found. It’s not yet clear if the ruling will affect consumers. Full Story
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The agency’s regional administrator toured the area with the head of a local nonprofit, who complained that when “severe emissions” from gas wells and tanks make people sick, “there are no real remedies.” Full Story
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Operators pump a sea of “produced water” underground for disposal. Intensifying tremors raise fears that the deep toxic waste pits could intermingle with water used for farming and drinking. Full Story
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The bills would allow the state to hire companies to build emergency gas-fueled power plants, among other ideas for swinging the state’s power balance away from wind and solar. Full Story
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In 2021, the Texas Senate declined to consider a bill extending the program, which discounted local property taxes to lure big companies to the state. It had become plagued with bipartisan accusations of “corporate welfare.” Full Story
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The idea, which still lacks some important details and could be changed by state lawmakers, would change how electricity is paid for in tight times. We explain it for everyday Texans. Full Story
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