• 713-524-4CEC (4232)
  • info@cechouston.org
Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: July 8, 2014
July 8, 2014

Environmental Headlines for the Houston Region: July 8, 2014

Featured

  1. Residents, experts fear cap over toxic chemicals won’t hold up (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle, 7/3/2014)
    Three years ago, two pits of paper mill sludge that had long been polluting the San Jacinto River were capped and sealed. This has helped keep that sludge out of the river. However, with increasing storms and flooding, residents are now calling for the removal of the chemicals from the pits. The recurrent flooding could weaken the integrity of the pits and allow cancer-causing dioxins into the environment.
    www.houstonchronicle.com
  2. Court: Texas not liable for death of cranes (Matthew Tresaugue- Houston Chronicle, 6/30/2014)
    Recently a federal court overturned a lower court ruling and determined that Texas was not to blame for the high number of deaths of the endangered whooping cranes. The court ruled that this was a unique event that could not have been predicted or controlled. This overturned the previous ruling that ordered the state to supply enough water for habitat maintenance before issuing any new permits for water withdrawal.
    www.houstonchronicle.com
  3. Water-cleanup catalysts tackle biomass upgrading (RICE News, 6/26/2014)
    Rice University chemical engineer Michael Wong has been researching the catalytic potential of palladium-gold nanoparticles in cleaning polluted water. These metallic specks break down carcinogenic and toxic compounds. Wong’s latest study tested whether palladium-gold nanocatalysts could convert glycerol, a waste byproduct of biodiesel production, into high-value chemicals. Data showed that an ideal catalyst could be formed with the right balance of palladium and gold.
    http://news.rice.edu

EcoNotes

  • 7 July
  • 5 July
    • Houston a top-20 city for traffic congestion, study says (Josh Cain – Houston Business Journal)
      www.bizjournals.com
  • 3 July
    • Residents, experts fear cap over toxic chemicals won’t hold up (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Houston giant named top green energy company of 2014 (Nora Olabi – Houston Business Journal)
      www.bizjournals.com
    • Seem Hazy in Central Texas? It’s All Saharan Dust in the Wind (Dylan Baddour – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • An Expedition on the Disappearing Rio Grande (Brandi Grissom – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
  • 2 July
    • Announcing the merger of Houston Tomorrow & BetterHouston (5 Corners District)
      http://5cornersdistrict.org
    • Harris County Attorney Vince Ryan sues 10 companies, demands $23 million for Gulf oil spill (The Spring Observer)
      www.yourhoustonnews.com
    • Door Knocking for a Healthy Gulf (Anna Dvorak – Gulf Restoration Network Blog)
      https://healthygulf.org
    • Texas cities are embracing their rivers again. (Russell Roe – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • The sand and surf of Padre Island National Seashore create a place of isolation and beauty. (Chase A. Fountain – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • When there’s not enough for all, who gets water from the Colorado River? (Jenna Craig – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
    • Four years after Gulf oil spill, some Texas restoration projects are set to begin.  (Sheryl Smith-Rodgers – Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine)
      http://tpwmagazine.com
  • 1 July
    • Texas wins a round in court fight over whooping cranes, water allocation (Texas Climate News)
      http://texasclimatenews.org
    • Groundbreaking for new grocery store in Houston food desert (Atara Lindenbaum – Houston Tomorrow)
      www.houstontomorrow.org
    • Boat draining now mandatory at all Texas lakes (Mark Haslett – KETR News)
      http://ketr.org
    • Don’t Pick Up Aquatic Hitchhikers: New Texas Boating Rules Start Today (Dylan Baddour – StateImpact)
      http://stateimpact.npr.org
    • New state law aimed at protecting Texas waterways (Jeremy Desel – WFAA 8 News)
      www.wfaa.com
    • EPA’s CO2 Rule and the Back Door to Cap & Trade (The Energy Collective)
      http://theenergycollective.com
    • The Q&A: Blair Fitzsimons of the Texas Agricultural Land Trust (John Reynolds – The Texas Tribune)
      www.texastribune.org
  • 30 June
  • 29 June
    • Boom Meets Bust in Texas: Atop Sea of Oil, Poverty Digs In (Manny Fernandez and Clifford Krauss – The New York Times)
      www.nytimes.com
  • 28 June
    • Down the drain: Nearly 300 million gallons of water for 10 Texas cities in 2013 (Nicole C. Brambila – Lubbock Avalanche Journal)
      http://lubbockonline.com
  • 27 June
    • Chicken kicks up legal skirmish in oil patch (Matthew Tresaugue – Houston Chronicle)
      www.houstonchronicle.com
    • Everglades restoration project has had modest impact, report shows (Reuters)
      www.reuters.com
    • TxDOT pledges $25 million for Uptown BRT (David Crossley – Houston Tomorrow)
      www.houstontomorrow.org
    • Why Transit Matters for Houston’s Future (Kelsey A. Walker and Stephen L. Klineberg – Kinder Institute, Rice University)
      http://kinder.rice.edu
    • Council Endorses EPA Emissions Rule (Lizzie Jesperson – The Austin Chronicle)
      www.austinchronicle.com
  • 26 June
  • 25 June
  • 24 June
  • 23 June