Tag Archives: pollution

Sierra Club sues over coal permits

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Remember how four coal plants were granted permits to pollute more in December? You probably don’t, because it basically happened under cover of darkness. The Sierra Club found out about it and has filed a lawsuit to call a halt … Continue reading →

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How gassy are we?

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’m talking about greenhouse gases, of course. And the answer is, now you can find out for yourself. The greenhouse gas wars are about to heat up again in Texas. Next month, a federal court hears oral arguments in lawsuits … Continue reading →

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Valero will not appeal tax break decision

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Valero Energy Corp. has decided not to appeal the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s rejection of its request for a controversial property tax exemption. […] Valero spokesman Bill Day said the company no longer would seek the exemption because … Continue reading →

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It’s hard to get beyond coal

Posted on January 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The city of Austin is trying, but there are many obstacles along the way. In Austin politics, it’s almost an article of faith that the city must aggressively curb its contribution to global climate change, regardless of what transpires across … Continue reading →

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CSAPR stayed

Posted on January 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There was some bad news at the end of the year. A federal court ordered [last] Friday that the Environmental Protection Agency’s controversial cross-state air pollution rule be stayed — to the delight of Texas officials and the chagrin of … Continue reading →

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County sues over dioxin

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

More like this, please. Harris County has filed a lawsuit in state court to recover hundreds of millions of dollars from local waste management companies and a Pasadena paper factory responsible for storage of a human carcinogen that has leaked … Continue reading →

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TCEQ denies Valero tax break

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Texas environmental regulators have rejected Valero Energy Corp.’s request for a tax break that cities, counties and school districts feared would lead to devastating cuts to their budgets. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality denied the request because the … Continue reading →

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Yet another effect of the drought

Posted on December 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Bacteria. One expert used simple rhyme to explain the reason behind high levels of bacteria in Texas waterways. “The solution to pollution is dilution.” Increased bacteria levels in rivers and streams due to decreased flow that typically dilutes runoff pollution … Continue reading →

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Luminant and the CSAPR

Posted on October 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have not followed the dustup between energy producer Luminant and the EPA very closely. What I know is that like most other disputes between those who want cleaner air here in Texas and those who don’t is that someone … Continue reading →

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Giving tax breaks to those that don’t need them

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

You can add this to the list of things schools might have to pay for that they don’t have the money to pay for. Three environmental commissioners appointed by Gov. Rick Perry are considering whether to grant some of the … Continue reading →

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Another story about plastic bags

Posted on August 16, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

No news on the bag-banning front, though officials in the D/FW area quoted in this Star-Telegram story seem open to the idea, but what interested me was the numbers mentioned: Estimates show that each person now uses about 130 plastic … Continue reading →

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“Flex permit” plants agree to follow EPA guidelines

Posted on July 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Somehow, the world continued to rotate on its axis afterward. The unique way Texas regulates air pollution from refineries, chemical plants and other major industries is no more — for now. The EPA said Tuesday all 136 industrial plants with … Continue reading →

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The landfills of Waller County

Posted on July 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There are three things I find remarkable about this story about a proposed landfill in Waller County, near Hempstead. A Georgia-based company wants to build a landfill and industrial park just outside the city on Texas 6 and Kelley, on … Continue reading →

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New clean air rule from EPA

Posted on July 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A new rule from the EPA that seeks to limit pollution that originates in one state but affects others as well should have a big effect on Texas. The rule, which covers 27 states and the District of Columbia, will … Continue reading →

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We’re number 16!

Posted on July 6, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

In a list of green cities. The Bayou City placed 16th in the newly released U.S. and Canada Green City Index, a study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit on behalf of Siemens. The study, released at the 2011 Aspen … Continue reading →

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Abbott takes his pro-pollution crusade to a new front

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

This is the sort of thing our Attorney General thinks is worth fighting for. Expanding on the push-and-pull between Washington and Texas on environmental regulation, the state’s attorney general has called federal regulations meant to cut greenhouse gases from auto … Continue reading →

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South Padre Island joins the bag banning brigade

Posted on January 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

That didn’t take long. Buoyed by a weeks-old law in nearby Brownsville, South Padre Island leaders Wednesday made the vacation hot spot the next Texas town to restrict the use of single-use plastic bags. The unanimously approved prohibition against using … Continue reading →

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TCEQ a no-show at EPA hearing

Posted on January 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

They’d rather sue than engage. At the hearing in a hotel ballroom, Al Armendariz, the EPA’s regional administrator for Texas and five adjacent states, said the federal agency prefers to let the state issue the permits, as it does for … Continue reading →

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Pollution prosecution

Posted on January 17, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Not really sure what to make of County Commissioner Steve Radack’s proposal to create a new pollution control department that will more aggressively pursue violators. “We have people out there violating the law and they’re polluting,” Radack said. “They’ve been … Continue reading →

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No more plastic bags in Brownsville

Posted on January 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It will be very interesting to see how this plays out. The eyes of retail will be on Brownsville this week as the city forges ahead as the first in Texas to ban single-use plastic bags. The ordinance against the … Continue reading →

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Here comes the EPA

Posted on December 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The EPA has seized control of the permitting process in Texas for refineries, power plants, and the like. In a letter sent this week to state regulators, an EPA official wrote that 167 facilities in Texas – many of them … Continue reading →

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Tar sands and Houston’s air quality

Posted on December 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

PDiddie attended the Houston Frontlines tour that I blogged about before, and wrote a really nice, detailed report about it. Some background: Tar sands oil contains — among other heavy metals, neurotoxins, and carcinogens — an average of 11 times … Continue reading →

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More Texas v. EPA

Posted on December 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The stakes keep getting higher. The EPA has threatened dozens of Texas refiners and chemical and plastic makers with penalties if they don’t begin taking steps to bring their air pollution permits into compliance with federal law by late December. … Continue reading →

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Truck fuel efficiency

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is long overdue. The Obama administration announced new rules [last week] to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants by requiring greater fuel efficiency for big trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles starting with 2014 models. The regulations, the … Continue reading →

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Bay City coal plant gets TCEQ approval

Posted on October 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Great. Texas’ environmental agency granted air pollution permits for a proposed coal- and petroleum coke-fired power plant in Matagorda County over the objections of local officials and residents Wednesday. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality voted 3-0 in support of … Continue reading →

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The Dirty Dozen

Posted on September 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Today, the national League of Conservation Voters (LCV), which works to turn environmental values into national priorities, announced the inaugural state-level Dirty Dozen program. Rick Perry is one of 12 candidates for state office from around the … Continue reading →

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State sues the EPA again

Posted on July 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Round and round we go… Texas has sued the federal Environmental Protection Agency for the second time in six weeks, escalating a feud over the state’s rules for air pollution from refiners and other large industries. State Attorney General Greg … Continue reading →

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Texas sues the EPA

Posted on June 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose this was inevitable. Texas filed a federal court challenge Monday to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to reject part of the state’s air-quality program. […] State Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office — in a statement accompanying the … Continue reading →

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Some people want the EPA to do more

Posted on June 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Sierra Club is taking legal action against the Environmental Protection Agency, saying it has dragged its feet in Texas. The group said EPA officials have missed legal deadlines for action on limiting Texas pollution’s effects on neighboring states; reducing … Continue reading →

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Here comes the EPA

Posted on May 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No one can say they weren’t warned. Objecting to how Texas regulates air pollution, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said Tuesday it is taking over the issuance of an operating permit for a Corpus Christi refinery and could step in … Continue reading →

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“Don’t ask, don’t smell”

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron takes the TCEQ to task for it’s screw-the-public decision regarding the Lyondell permit. “They’re proposing to put thousands of tons of a cancer-causing chemical into our air,” says former Mayor Bill White. “They say they’ll reduce the amount … Continue reading →

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Why TCEQ is broken

Posted on February 26, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Back in 2008, Mayor White and the city of Houston made a request of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to hold a hearing before a judge on the latest permit application for Lyondell Chemical Co.’s refinery along the … Continue reading →

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If we’re looking for revenue to help deal with that budget gap…

Posted on February 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We could always follow the lead of many other states and adopt our own climate plan. Already, ten states in the Northeast have put their electric utilities under a cap-and-trade system known as RGGI. Eleven Western states and Canadian provinces … Continue reading →

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EPA public hearing on hazardous ozone standards in Houston

Posted on January 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The following was sent to me from the Sierra Club: Right now the EPA is accepting public comments on proposed new ozone standards that will make the air we breathe cleaner and our communities healthier, but they are facing fierce … Continue reading →

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