The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Texas General Land Office proposed a massive levee system for the Houston area in late October that would cost as much as $20 billion. It's part of a larger plan to protect the state's coastline from hurricane storm surge. Full Story
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The chief of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department says the absence of the 54-year-old Land and Water Conservation Fund is a "substantial loss" for state parks and natural areas. Full Story
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For Texas ports, the rise in oil and gas exports is a windfall. For some communities, it’s not so simple. Full Story
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As more oil and gas facilities come online in the Coastal Bend, the city and port of Corpus — and a handful of private companies — are planning to build a bevy of seawater desalination plants. Full Story
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A major scientific report released Friday by the Trump administration says Hurricane Harvey and other recent extreme weather events are a sign of things to come as the earth warms. Full Story
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Nearly 500 water utilities across the state tested positive for atrazine — a weed killer — which can lead to harmful health effects, according to a new report. The Environmental Working Group also found that utilities are testing water during times when the herbicide isn't being used as much — and that they may be lowballing the results. Full Story
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The Nature Conservancy plans to use settlement money from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to construct new oyster reefs in Galveston and Copano bays. Full Story
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The Bureau of Land Management is making it easier to produce oil and gas on federal acreage. In southeastern New Mexico, it can’t even keep up with what’s already happening. Full Story
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Rural Texans like the places where they live — the environment, the pace, the lifestyle — but they'd like to have access to better jobs, a new poll finds. Full Story
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After seven days of boiling their water, Austin Water customers are once again allowed to consume water directly from the tap. Full Story
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Railroad Commission Chairman Christi Craddick — a Republican whose relationship with the industry she regulates has been questioned — is seeking re-election to a second term. She faces challenges from Democrat Roman McAllen and Libertarian Mike Wright. Full Story
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Find out where Texas midterm candidates stand on student debt, DACA, school gun violence and more. Full Story
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After the wettest September in Texas history, multiple Central Texas reservoirs are completely full. That has forced officials to consider releasing a historic amount of water down the Colorado River. Full Story
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The Trump administration has its predecessor to thank when it comes to “energy dominance.” Full Story
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An unprecedented drilling boom in the Permian Basin is great for business. But it’s polluting the air, overwhelming communities and threatening the planet. Full Story
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For years, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has studied how best to protect Houston from deadly hurricane storm surge. It will announce which one it thinks is best later this month. Full Story
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Organizers of the "Protect Texas from Radioactive Waste Tour" plan to travel to five Texas cities over the next week in protest of a proposed plan to store used nuclear materials in West Texas. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 78 counties Friday and instructed several agencies to increase preparedness as heavy rainfall, floods and gusty winds are expected across portions of the Texas coast this weekend. Full Story
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A forthcoming report by the Texas Campaign for the Environment Fund says the standards Texas uses to determine how much — and whether — to clean up abandoned industrial facilities and other contaminated sites are 'significantly weaker' than those of neighboring states and the federal government, in part because it tolerates a higher cancer risk. Full Story
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The report claims fecal bacteria at Texas beaches, rivers and lakes frequently reached unsafe levels in 2017. Full Story
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