The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
A new report by the Environmental Integrity Project compiled data on every U.S. plastics plant built, expanded or proposed since 2012, revealing massive growth in Texas. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/ca2186c06dadaf5ec44bc67891bbdc17/Plastics%20ICN%20DB%20TT%2001.jpg)
As ranchers recover from the Smokehouse Creek fire, they face the agonizing choice of what to do with an unknown number of injured cattle. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8cf0122f1581ce3642140f0d290b5f14/0303%20Panhandle%20Canadian%20JR%20TT%2025.jpg)
Laredo residents who live near a sterilization plant say the new federal limits on the pollutant will improve air quality and reduce their city’s high cancer risk. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/8ba4db4c4ce57fdf302e37c700da8d5a/Drone%20Midwest%20Laredo%20MG%20TT%2002.jpg)
Los datos públicos de una red de monitores de la calidad del aire alrededor del Canal de Navegación de Houston son difíciles de interpretar y a menudo son insuficientes, dejando a vecindarios de mayoría latina, como Cloverleaf, sin saber si el aire que respiran es seguro. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bd14775e82d6fded529537d3e88e33a2/2%20-%201028%20Bike%20Ride%20EV%20GN%2027.JPG)
Public data from a network of state air monitors around the Houston Ship Channel is hard to interpret and is often inadequate, leaving Latino-majority neighborhoods like Cloverleaf unaware of whether the air they breathe is safe. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/b6508a43dac4976f4ef54160975ef653/1%20-%201210%20Cloverleaf%20Family%20DV%2005.JPG)
The panel of three lawmakers and two residents will also look at disaster preparedness. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6cdb1ce27ce93cf70fff1c5dd1c5a1e1/0303%20Panhandle%20Canadian%20JR%2035.jpg)
As crews fight to keep deadly blazes under control, weather conditions could increase risk of more fires. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1698077387b467cb84a1a760f00595dd/0303%20Roughneck%20Fire%20JR%20TT%2001.jpg)
Hemphill County Judge Lisa Johnson said the region has been overwhelmed with the response of support, but work remains. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6a640450629309b206228430537d23d2/03-08_Wildfires-Lead-Title-01-v1.png)
Blocked in Louisiana, Formosa Plastics looks to grow around Lavaca Bay instead. But it and other interested industrial plants are waiting for more water. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c9f90551e430c6be01468c2df9ba3a97/0301%20Formosa%20Resevoir%20DB%2001.jpg)
Experts say utilities need to be ready for extreme weather, which could be a challenge in a state where discussing climate change is often taboo. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/db996882dd85ed4e267a3b5dfe5534af/0305%20McQuiddy%20Power%20Lines%20MR%20TT%2008.jpg)
The wildfires offers a reminder that most of rural Texas is protected by volunteers. And there aren’t many of them. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/b330810d05ab5548b228afb9c3957d37/Panhandle%20Wildfire%20Reuters%20TT%2001.jpg)
The Smokehouse Creek Fire has grown to be the largest in state history. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/649db2068637b4d5cb3c2ca364cd2c49/0228%20Smokehouse%20Creek%20Firefighters%20REUTERS.jpg)
Ranchers have likely lost thousands of cattle in the wildfires, according to some preliminary estimates. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a2c77795a335156bc6f049b195ea6bc1/0305%20USDA%20Wildfire%20Info%20MR%20TT%2007.jpg)
Rural Texans are more than twice as likely to go without homeowners insurance than their urban peers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/54984ecfa5862b83d8a5f7789cd65e7a/0301%20Wildfires%20McBroom%20JR%2021.jpg)
Monday’s vote lets Texas Parks and Wildlife staff begin negotiations to swap 43 acres in the park for 477 acres next to a federal wildlife refuge. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1083ada40b334b508c0f3b71f91da251/SpaceX%20Launch%20Site%20EG%2002.jpg)
The full scope of damage still isn’t known, but some Panhandle residents have returned home. Firefighters continue battling the infernos. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d15daed6c1e9d8bab020d087d04acfad/0303%20Panhandle%20Canadian%20JR%20TT%2009.jpg)
The fire that engulfed their town was only 15% contained over the weekend, but Canadian residents were back to selling flowers and preparing for an election. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/99488e3fe52e7a210639fe4e2269d361/0303%20Panhandle%20Canadian%20JR%20TT%2022.jpg)
Shaken by the devastation, families find comfort in each other as they pick through the rubble and commune at a church in nearby Borger. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/d2c6ceb980e21788fd1000b9b6042a10/0301%20Wildfires%20McBroom%20JH%2007.jpg)
Texas wildfires have consumed acres of agricultural land, killing thousands of livestock, destroying crops and exacerbating challenges lingering from last year’s drought. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/2a55b4fb9c48d79990f2fb88b0e177e4/0301%20Panhandle%20Fire%20JR%2006.jpg)
Get the latest updates as firefighters continue battling massive fires that have burned more than 1 million acres. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/81d8479dfc4db338527bcb765533eeff/0303%20Roughneck%20Fire%20JR%20TT%2003.jpg)