The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
Revenue for 10 emergency power plants would come from a monthly charge on Texans’ power bills. The proposal is just one of several bills lawmakers are considering after February's massive power outages. Full Story
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The state's grid operator included extreme weather scenarios in its early summer assessment and found that a combination of a severe drought, heat wave and low winds could lead to more power outages. Experts warn this summer could be hot and dry, enhanced by climate change. Full Story
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A higher than expected amount of plant outages for maintenance created tight conditions for Texas' power grid. It returned to normal late Tuesday evening. Full Story
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A bill advancing in the House seeks to ban spent nuclear fuel, one of the most dangerous types of radioactive waste, from coming to Texas. Full Story
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Some say lawmakers should go further to ensure power plants can withstand increased weather due to climate change. And they worry that much of the legislation advancing will be up to the Public Utility Commission to enforce. Full Story
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Senate Bill 3 would require all power generators, transmission lines, natural gas facilities and pipelines to make upgrades for extreme weather. Its prospects are uncertain in the House, which is scheduled to take up a series of related, standalone bills on Tuesday. Full Story
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The newly revised number is nearly twice the 57 that state health officials estimated last week and will likely continue to grow. Full Story
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A bill to stop cities from banning natural gas as a fuel source for heating homes and other buildings is being advanced as priority storm-response legislation following the February power outages. Full Story
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The bills, which include mandating weatherization of power plants, reforming the ERCOT board and creating a state emergency communications system, are “a work in progress.” Full Story
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Twenty-one states signed onto the multi-state lawsuit led by Texas and Montana. Full Story
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The bill would direct state investment funds to divest from companies that cut ties with fossil fuel companies, pitting Texas against some increasingly carbon-conscious Wall Street investors. Full Story
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Shelly Botkin's departure comes a week after the commission's chair, DeAnn Walker, also stepped down. Full Story
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A proposed remodeling of the state’s electricity grid from Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller might be more than it seems. It reads like a campaign’s position paper. Full Story
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Politically powerful natural gas production and transportation companies, along with their regulators, appear to have so far escaped the wrath of the governor and the Legislature in the aftermath of the Texas power outages. Full Story
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Johnson’s Backyard Garden, an organic farm near Austin, lost almost its entire crop during February's devastating winter storm. Full Story
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A subcommittee chair wrote in a letter to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas that the grid’s failures were “costly” and disproportionately affected low-income communities and communities of color. Full Story
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Many hourly wage employees across the state lost working hours last week during the storm and power outage disaster. Now, they’re left with a choice between paying for rent or groceries. Full Story
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Griddy made headlines for sending massive bills to customers after a winter storm sent wholesale electricity skyrocketing. Full Story
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Lawmakers will continue asking a litany of officials and executives how last week's power outages happened. Legislators in both chambers spent more than 12 hours investigating the disruptions Thursday. Full Story
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Lawmakers grilled public regulators and energy grid officials about how power outages happened and why Texans weren't given more warnings about the danger. Full Story
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