Water scarcity and clean energy collide in South Texas
A high-tech chemical company has purchased the last available water in the Nueces River to make hydrogen and ammonia for export. Full Story
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![The sun sets over the Port of Corpus Christi in March 2018.]()
Credit: Eddie Seal for The Texas Tribune -
Tainted water flowed to these Texans’ homes for three years. No one told them.
A new operator was assigned to fix the well in Midland County, which is still not compliant with state standards. Full Story
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![A playa (flood plain) borders a neighborhood in South Midland on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2024. For three years, residents from the neighborhood outside city limits consumed well water laced with traces of arsenic. The well can be seen in the bottom right of the flood plain.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Another hot, dry summer may push water supplies in parts of Texas to the brink
Some areas are starting the year with low water reserves. Forecasters don’t expect substantial relief from the weather. Full Story
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![Stagnant water is seen at the dry spillway of the Falcon Dam in Starr County on Aug. 18, 2022. Assistant Area Operations Manager at the Falcon dam Jesus Guerra says water has not flowed through the spillway since last year because water levels are below the dam gates.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
Midland settles with company to drill wastewater wells near the city’s drinking water supply
The city initially protested Pilot’s applications to drill the wells close to its water supply. Full Story
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![A water tower at the Midland International Air & Space Port on Jan. 28, 2022.]()
Credit: Lauren Witte/The Texas Tribune -
Texas voters gave retired teachers raises and approved new infrastructure funds as most constitutional amendments passed
Voters approved a massive property tax cut and several other measures, but refused to raise the mandatory retirement age for judges. Full Story
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![The Texas Capitol at sunrise on Tuesday, June 6, in Austin, Texas.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Taxes, state parks, infrastructure: Texans will decide 14 constitutional amendments today
Texans are being asked to cut property taxes, create a new fund for water infrastructure and give child-care facilities a tax exemption among other propositions. Here’s a breakdown of each constitutional amendment and what you need to know to vote. Full Story
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![Voters wait to cast their ballots at the Dittmar Recreation Center in South Austin on March 1, 2022.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texans may approve billions for energy, water, parks and broadband on Nov. 7
At stake in next week’s constitutional amendment election is $13 billion in infrastructure spending. Supporters say it’s an opportunity for a once-in-a-lifetime investment. Full Story
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![Pipes lie in a trench inside the Regency Apartment complex in Austin on Feb. 24, 2021.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Author Dan Egan talks with The Texas Tribune about phosphorus overuse and toxic algae blooms
Egan sat down with Tribune environmental reporter Alejandra Martinez to talk about his new book, “The Devil’s Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance,” which explains how overuse of phosphorus is impacting the environment. Full Story
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Texas needs water workers. Will high school students answer the call?
Nearly two-thirds of the state’s water and wastewater agencies say they need more workers. Full Story
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![Consolidated Water Supply Corporation employees patch a broken pipe on April 19, 2023 in Crockett.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Llano River communities fight former oil executive’s plan for a private dam
Texas has thousands of private dams, but a former oil executive’s application to build one on the South Llano River would be the first in the watershed for recreational use. Opponents fear it would harm the river’s health and encourage more private dams. Full Story
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![Linda Fawcett stands in front of her painting “Water Witch,” in her dining room Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, in Junction. Named after the moniker used to describe a person who used dowsing rods to search for water underground, the painting depicts Fawcett’s biggest fear of the Llano River going dry.]()
Credit: Eli Hartman/The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ environmental agency enables companies to increase oilfield wastewater disposal in rivers
Researchers are still studying the chemical makeup of “produced water” from Permian Basin oil fields. But regulators say they’re ready to issue permits to discharge the water into rivers and creeks. Full Story
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![Fracking's water demand requires the construction of ponds like these, which store millions of gallons of fresh water. Aug. 21, 2013.]()
Credit: Tamir Kalifa for The Texas Tribune -
Heat, drought and population growth have stressed aquifers that supply water to millions of Texans
Diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for demand water highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability. Full Story
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![David Baker, founder and director of the Wimberley Watershed Association, said he's never seen the water level so low in Jacob's Well. Photographed on Thursday, August 10, 2023.]()
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Texas towns are starving for capital and lack the resources to apply for grants. This group hopes to help.
Texas Rural Funders hopes a one-stop resource for grant applications and writers could help small towns win money to fund innovation and capital needs. Full Story
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![An aerial view of Groveton March 20, 2023, in Groveton, Texas.]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Without access to water lines, Texas colonias residents are pulling water from the desert air
Thousands of low-income, Latino residents in Texas still do not have safe drinking water. In one El Paso colonia, some residents are using solar distillation to generate water from the air. Full Story
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![Olga Thomas and other residents of Hueco Tanks rely on a private company to haul water to their neighborhood. Now she can count on her hydro panels for drinking water. May 23, 2023.]()
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Texas lawmakers allocated more than $2 billion to increase the state’s water supply and reduce flooding
Texans across the state are affected by declining water supplies, water infrastructure disruptions and flooding in their communities. Full Story
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![Lake Alan Henry in Garza County on April. 27, 2023, in Garza County, about 65 miles southeast of Lubbock.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
After historic drought, lawmakers agree on billion-dollar plan to expand water supplies, fix infrastructure
Following one of the hottest summers on record, lawmakers have set an ambitious target: By 2033, they want to bump up the state’s water supply by an amount equal to three of the largest reservoirs in the state. Full Story
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![One of the city's water towers stands in Wolfforth, on April 26, 2023.]()
Credit: Justin Rex for The Texas Tribune -
Rural Texas landowners who lost water access due to San Antonio pipeline could soon get relief
Groundwater levels rapidly declined in rural Lee County after San Antonio began pumping the water and moving it 100 miles southwest. A Senate bill would help affected well owners. Full Story
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![The Vista Ridge site in Burleson County on July 12, 2021.]()
Credit: Sophie Park/The Texas Tribune -
House advances bill that could provide billions of dollars for new water projects and fixing aging infrastructure
The bill aims to create a water supply four times the size of Lake Livingston, one of the state’s largest reservoirs. But it may still be a “drop in the bucket” compared to the state’s needs. Full Story
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![Water pours into a holding pond inside Rio Grande City’s new $12 million water treatment plant. Along the Texas-Mexico border, nearly 90,000 people are believed to still live without running water. An untold number more — likely tens of thousands, but no one is sure — often have running water of such poor quality that they cannot know what poisons or diseases it might carry.]()
Credit: Spencer Selvidge for The Texas Tribune -
Everything you need to know about Texas’ beleaguered water systems
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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![Water spews out of a fire hydrant as a San Antonio Water System crew works to fix a water main break near Hunt Ln. and Adams Hill in San Antonio, TX on August 18, 2022.]()
Credit: Chris Stokes for The Texas Tribune -
Texas’ water infrastructure is broken, jeopardizing quality and supply for a growing state
On a daily basis, water managers in cities across the state move from crisis to crisis hoping to keep the water flowing to residents. Full Story
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![Tom Bailey flushes out a water line in Zavalla on April 10, 2023.]()
Credit: Mark Felix/The Texas Tribune