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December 14, 2011

ECONOTES 2011-12-14: Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region

Featured

  1. Tiny Algae Could Be a Big Source of Power (Mose Buchele – StateImpact News, 12/09/2011)
    Dr. Robert Hebner, director of the UT’s Center for Electromechanics and at the forefront of algae research, does not see algae as pond scum but as “fuel, cures for cancer nutricuticals, sources of chemicals that are greener than we’ve ever had before.” Last summer, Hebner produced biofuel from algae that was naturally occurring at a sewage treatment plant outside of Austin. This shows promise in the algae technology. However, at this point in time, it would take a lot of algae to provide for the U.S. fuel needs.
    http://stateimpact.npr.org/
  2. Texas water plan set for approval but complicated by population growth, reservoir dispute (Kelley Shannon – The Dallas Morning News, 12/04/2011)
    Drafting the state water plan has become even more complicated in the past year. The plan has to take into account the reservoir dispute in northeast Texas, questions about climate change science, and the state’s rapid population growth. The Texas Water Development Board is expected to approve the plan on December 15th. The severe drought this year has increased the importance of the plan to account for such harsh conditions.
    http://www.dallasnews.com/
  3. Scientists working on report card for Gulf’s health (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle, 12/07/2011)
    The Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies in Corpus Christi is currently developing a science-based report card that addresses the health of the Gulf of Mexico. It should include at least 20 key indicators of the Gulf’s well-being, ranging from sea grasses and mangroves to bottle-nose dolphins. The report should influence decision-making on the policies and resources needed to achieve a healthy gulf.
    http://www.chron.com/

EcoNotes