Tag Archives: water

Texas plans to sue over EPA’s latest clean air plan

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

So what else is new? Attorney General Ken Paxton said Tuesday that he plans to sue the Obama administration over the proposed “Clean Power Plan,” its plan to combat climate change by slashing carbon emissions from power plants. “Texas has … Continue reading →

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Just a reminder, we still need to use less water

Posted on April 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

In particular, we need to water our lawns less. Even Texans with the greenest of lawns water them too much, many landscape experts say. And if everyone would turn on the sprinklers only twice a week — still probably more … Continue reading →

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Reusing wastewater

Posted on January 25, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Get used to it. Reclaimed wastewater soon will irrigate the trim lawns and wooded parks of some Houston suburbs. Instead of being dumped into the bayous, some of it might even undergo more extensive treatment in order to flow from … Continue reading →

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ERCOT acknowledges that meeting EPA clean air requirements won’t be that big a deal

Posted on December 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From Texas Clean Air Matters: Well, it didn’t take long before the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) released, at the request of Texas’ very political Public Utilities Commission, another report about the impacts of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) … Continue reading →

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Other towns consider fracking bans

Posted on December 5, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

If Denton can do it… A Texas hamlet shaken by its first recorded earthquake last year and hundreds since then is among communities now taking steps to challenge the oil and gas industry’s traditional supremacy over the right to frack. … Continue reading →

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EPA climate change plan would save water

Posted on November 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Well, what do you know? As state regulators fret about how President Obama’s effort to combat climate change would affect the Texas power grid, a new study says the rules would be simpler to adopt than those regulators suggest – … Continue reading →

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More on the initial bill filings

Posted on November 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the Trib, a sampling: As of Monday afternoon, a bill repealing the Texas Dream Act, which allows undocumented immigrant students to pay in-state college tuition rates, had yet to emerge. Lt. Gov.-elect Dan Patrick promised while campaigning that he would work … Continue reading →

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News flash: Greg Abbott wants to sue the EPA again

Posted on August 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Nobody could have foreseen this! Foretelling a new environmental battle between state and federal regulators, Attorney General Greg Abbott on Monday demanded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency back down from a proposal to expand the definition of federal waters to … Continue reading →

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On “potty water”

Posted on May 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Wastewater reuse in Wichita Falls has been in the works for years and would have happened with or without the drought. It was fast-tracked as the city deals with reservoirs that are … Continue reading →

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The other reason why Huy Fong won’t move to Texas

Posted on May 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

In a word, water. Huy Fong Foods, which is staying put for now, is different from Toyota and other companies that have recently been wooed or moved to Texas. It is an agribusiness, relying on thousands of tons of local … Continue reading →

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Give up the green

Posted on May 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Note: From time to time, I solicit guest posts from various individuals on different topics. While I like to think I know a little something about a lot of things, I’m fortunate to be acquainted with a number of people … Continue reading →

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Maybe we don’t need that much more water

Posted on May 16, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

More conservation would mean less demand and less need going forward. Drought-prone Texas could make better use of its existing water supplies and avoid spending billions of dollars on new reservoirs, pipelines and other big-ticket projects with more realistic forecasts … Continue reading →

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It’s like the drought never really went away

Posted on May 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

If it ever did go away it didn’t go far, because here it is again. Even as light rain moved through the region Thursday, Houston officially slipped back into a moderate drought. Although most areas only recorded a few hundredths … Continue reading →

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Brazoria looks at desalinization

Posted on May 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Booming population growth plus greater upstream demands on their main water source equals thoughts of alternate water supplies. By the time the Brazos bisects Brazoria County on its way to the Gulf of Mexico, it’s all but tapped out, unable … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of Ag Commissioner race

Posted on February 23, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s mostly about Kinky and pot, because what else is there to talk about? Democrat Kinky Friedman is attempting to add a little spice to the crowded agriculture commissioner race by being the lone candidate to advocate legalizing marijuana and … Continue reading →

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The D-word is back

Posted on February 22, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s never really gone away since 2009. Locked in a seemingly endless cycle of droughts and brief reprieves, the Houston region has quietly slipped back into yet another drought. Since December Houston has received less than half its normal rainfall. … Continue reading →

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We need to take better care of our water

Posted on December 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We lose way too much of it because our infrastructure is old and in need of replacement. At a time when the Lone Star State is facing a grave water shortage and its population is expected to double by 2060, … Continue reading →

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Less drought

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. After near-normal rainfall during the spring and summer, this fall a number of drought-ending storm systems began to sweep across Texas, particularly the eastern half of the state. “Drought conditions have ended in most of East and Southeast … Continue reading →

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Theories abound about why the Dome referendum failed

Posted on November 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus said the outcome of both county bond propositions, as well as the Katy stadium, is indicative of resistance among conservative voters to big-ticket spending items … Continue reading →

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What’s on the agenda for Mayor Parker in her third term

Posted on November 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Now that Mayor Parker has been safely re-elected, with a better-than-expected margin, what does she plan to do from here? A triumphant Parker on Tuesday lauded her “decisive” victory but quickly shifted her focus to the coming two years, listing … Continue reading →

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Election results: Texas

Posted on November 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Short and sweet: All nine constitutional amendments passed, all by substantial margins. Here’s The Observer on Prop 6. The Texas Water Development Board will now oversee a $2 billion water bank, seeded with capital from the Rainy Day Fund, to … Continue reading →

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There are no new ideas, but there are plenty of bad ideas

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There’s so much wrong with what Greg Abbott wants for Texas that it’s hard to know where to begin. In his first major policy address as a gubernatorial candidate, Attorney General Greg Abbott proposed tighter constitutional limits on state spending … Continue reading →

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Mostly looking good for Prop 6

Posted on October 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A good poll result for the water infrastructure Constitutional amendment. Texans support $2 billion in water infrastructure financing by a better than 2-to-1 margin, but nearly a quarter haven’t decided how they will vote on the issue this November, according … Continue reading →

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The water campaign begins

Posted on October 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The most high profile constitutional amendment now has a campaign behind it. Supporters are laying the groundwork for an aggressive effort to educate voters and drown out opposition with roughly one month before early voting starts. A coalition of political … Continue reading →

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Meet your Constitutional amendments

Posted on August 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib runs down the nine proposed constitutional amendments that will be on the ballot this November. First on the ballot will be HJR 62, by state Rep. Chris Turner, D-Grand Prairie, which would authorize the Legislature to provide a property tax exemption for the … Continue reading →

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The drought is still a big deal

Posted on July 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

In case you were wondering. The Brazos River has nearly dried up, prompting cities in Galveston County to issue drought alerts and preventing Brazoria County rice farmers from planting a second crop this year. Water for rice farmers and 12 … Continue reading →

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Drinking water from the Gulf

Posted on June 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Well, there is a lot of water there. The wicked drought gripping Texas has made one thing clear to Bill West: There is not enough water to meet new urban demands and competing environmental needs. So in his search for … Continue reading →

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Opposition gearing up for the water fund amendment

Posted on June 11, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The legislation to create a state water infrastructure fund, and the joint resolution that authorized tapping the Rainy Day Fund for up to $2 billion to seed it, had a rocky road in the legislature and wasn’t completed until the … Continue reading →

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We appear to have a budget

Posted on May 24, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Took them long enough. After days of jockeying and one-upsmanship, the Texas House and Senate each approved measures Wednesday evening critical to passing their next two-year budget. “The results of these two bills together is a good conservative budget, and … Continue reading →

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Where things stand with two weeks to go in the legislative session

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

With the Thursday midnight deadline for bills to pass on second reading in the House, I figured this would be a good time to take a look at the status of some major legislation and legislative priorities. There are two … Continue reading →

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Water, water, not so fast

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

So much for that. A major bill on the top of Gov. Rick Perry’s priority list that would authorize spending billions of dollars on state water projects faltered in the Texas House on Monday night after a contentious debate over … Continue reading →

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Senate to tap that Rainy Day Fund

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It is just sitting there, not doing any good if it’s unused. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands, laid out an ambitious plan to spend $6 billion from the state’s Rainy Day Fund on Thursday morning while also … Continue reading →

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Clean Water Forum

Posted on April 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re not at the Battleground Texas meeting today, Environment Texas has a fine thing to do instead: Houston Clean Water Forum on Saturday, April 6th at 3:00 PM As part of a Clean Water Forum sponsored by Environment Texas, … Continue reading →

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Our drought is severe again

Posted on March 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Not good, y’all. The situation continues to worsen across the state, with now more than 87 percent of Texas in a moderate or worse drought. It’s not clear when relief might be coming. After the very cold start to this … Continue reading →

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