Tag Archives: air quality

Harris County sues TCEQ over concrete plant permit

Posted on May 12, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

A good fight to pick. Harris County sued the Texas Commission on Environment Quality on Wednesday for approving a permit for a concrete crushing plant located near Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital in Houston’s Kashmere Gardens. The lawsuit – filed in … Continue reading →

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On the source of Houston’s greenhouse gas emissions

Posted on March 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This story is a lot more complex and nuanced than the headline would lead you to believe. It may come as no surprise to anyone who has spent time on Houston’s roads at rush hour that just over half of all the … Continue reading →

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Nothing but gray skies ahead

Posted on May 26, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

You want a small sign that things are returning to “normal”, here you go. Houston’s air pollution is returning to normal levels, following a period of cleaner skies during the stay-at-home orders put in place to slow the spread the … Continue reading →

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Commissioners Court gets more aggressive on environmental enforcement

Posted on September 16, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Commissioners Court on Tuesday voted to hire 61 employees across three departments in a bid to significantly boost Harris County’s ability to respond to environmental emergencies after finding numerous shortcomings in its efforts to manage three chemical fires near … Continue reading →

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Study shows a lot of gaps in Harris County’s ability to respond to chemical fires

Posted on August 5, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

This quantifies what was painfully apparent in recent months. More monitoring and manpower is needed for Harris County to better respond to chemical fires like the three that struck the region earlier this year, worrying residents and shutting the Houston … Continue reading →

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Another view of pollution enforcement

Posted on May 4, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

The state has its role, but it’s not all on them. Almost two months before a massive chemical fire erupted in Deer Park, sending a dark plume of smoke over much of Harris County, Precinct 2 Commissioner Adrian Garcia asked … Continue reading →

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Texas to get VW settlement money

Posted on June 30, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It’s something. Volkswagen has agreed to pay Texas $50 million in connection with the German automaker’s admitted peddling of diesel vehicles rigged to surpass emissions limits, Attorney General Ken Paxton announced Tuesday. The partial settlement is part of a larger, … Continue reading →

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New methane rules finalized

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Gentlemen, start your lawyers. The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday issued its final rule for methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. The rule limits methane emissions from new oil and gas infrastructure and requires operators to submit to … Continue reading →

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Houston’s anti-pollution ordinance killed by Supreme Court

Posted on May 1, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Alas. In passing two ordinances designed to regulate air pollution, the city of Houston overstepped its authority and illegally subverted state law, the Texas Supreme Court ruled Friday. The ruling is a victory for a coalition of industrial facilities whose … Continue reading →

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Pity the poor utilities

Posted on April 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Sorry, but low electricity prices, especially when they are aided by record amounts of wind power generation, are good news. Texas’ national lead in cheap wind power, combined with near historically low natural gas prices, mild weather, an abundant power … Continue reading →

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Find those leaks

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I don’t care how. A pair of state and federal government inspectors spent two weeks traveling around northern Colorado’s oil and gas fields in early 2012, filming with an infrared camera. Air pollution was rising in the region, and attention … Continue reading →

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New EPA rules for methane coming

Posted on March 14, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

You know what will follow. Building on already pending rules to cut methane leaks from both new oil and gas wells and those on federal lands, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency now plans to bring to the oil sector the … Continue reading →

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Checking in on Garcia v Green

Posted on February 12, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

An update on how the biggest primary fight in the county is going. U.S. Congressman Gene Green has taken Texas’ 29th District Democratic primary to television, leveraging his substantial financial advantage over challenger Adrian Garcia to pour more than $240,000 … Continue reading →

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Environmentalists petition EPA to strip Texas of some authorities

Posted on January 13, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This unfortunately is not likely to go anywhere, but I relish the idea anyway. Alleging that Texas has dramatically eroded its safeguards against air and water pollution, two environmental groups are asking the federal government to step in. The Environmental … Continue reading →

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Yet another lawsuit by Texas against the EPA

Posted on January 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

So what else is new? In another lawsuit against the federal Environmental Protection Agency, the state of Texas is taking aim at tightened standards on ground-level ozone — President Obama’s effort to cut down on smog that chokes the nation’s … Continue reading →

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More rules against polluting your neighbors proposed

Posted on November 24, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good. The Environmental Protection Agency proposed tougher new limits on Tuesday on smokestack emissions from Texas and 22 other states that burden downwind areas with air pollution from power plants they can’t control. At the same time, the EPA moved … Continue reading →

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No idling

Posted on November 10, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox, from last week: Mayor Annise Parker and Houston City Council today approved two significant ordinances that will improve Houston’s quality of life and protect public health: an anti-idling ordinance for motor vehicles with a gross vehicle weight … Continue reading →

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Thanks but no thanks, Ken

Posted on October 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County will continue to pursue its own lawsuit against VW. Harris County has responded to Ken Paxton’s request to drop its lawsuit against scandal-plagued Volkswagen. Its answer? A polite no. […] In a reply to Paxton dated Oct. 15, … Continue reading →

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Paxton wants to sue VW all by himself

Posted on October 16, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Really? Seeking to fight scandal-plagued Volkswagen alone, Attorney General Ken Paxton is asking two Texas counties to halt their lawsuits against the automaker — a move highlighting friction between Texas and local governments pursuing tens of millions of dollars in … Continue reading →

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State of Texas sues VW

Posted on October 11, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Bandwagon time! Following in the footsteps of Harris County and the city of Dallas, the state announced Thursday it is suing Volkswagen in connection with the German automaker’s admitted use of software that allowed its vehicles to circumvent emissions limits. … Continue reading →

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County sues VW for $100 million

Posted on October 5, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County on Tuesday set in motion a $100 million environmental lawsuit against Volkswagen, claiming emissions from 6,000 diesel cars circulating on roadways in the region have caused harm to the population. County Attorney Vince Ryan said his review … Continue reading →

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Houston pleads its case to the Supreme Court

Posted on September 4, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll see how they did. “The point of all this is to protect the public and the environment, to have clean air, and the TCEQ, for the Texas Clean Air Act, envisions that it be vigorously enforced,” [Houston attorney Robert] … Continue reading →

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Houston’s environmental protection ordinances go to the Supreme Court

Posted on September 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Where, sadly, they’ll likely get killed. State environmental regulators don’t adequately enforce air pollution laws, the city of Houston believes, and on Wednesday it will ask the state’s highest civil court to let it keep trying to do the job … 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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Here come the new ozone standards

Posted on December 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Over the objections of Texas officials, the Obama administration on Wednesday proposed a long-delayed rule to slash levels of ozone – a smog-forming pollutant known to worsen asthma, lung disease and heart … Continue reading →

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Court rules for the EPA against Texas again

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Another win for the environment. A federal appeals court on Tuesday upheld the Obama administration’s new rules that for the first time limit emissions of mercury and other harmful pollutants from coal- and oil-fired power plants. In a split decision, … Continue reading →

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EPA and TCEQ settle lawsuits over flex permits

Posted on February 4, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

One less court fight for us and the feds. The EPA and Texas on Wednesday said they have reached a deal over state permits for industrial air pollution, ending a four-year fight that to some had become a symbol of … Continue reading →

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That pollution isn’t our fault!

Posted on September 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

You have to admire the creativity. Harris County’s problem with tiny, lung-damaging particles in the air can be blamed partly on African dust and crop-clearing fires in Mexico, the state’s environmental agency has told federal regulators. If the Environmental Protection … Continue reading →

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SCOTUS to hear CSAPR appeal

Posted on July 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not terribly excited about anything the Supreme Court does these days, but we’ll see about this. The U.S. Supreme Court decided Monday to take a case that has pitted Texas against the Obama administration over a federal rule aimed … Continue reading →

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Everybody sues the EPA

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas and our pollution-loving Attorney General do it because they think the EPA does too much to protect us from harm. Some other groups do it because they think the EPA isn’t doing enough. In the suit … Continue reading →

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CSAPR knocked down by federal court

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Score one for the polluters. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in a 2-1 decision that the Environmental Protection Agency overstepped its authority with the new regulation. Led by Texas, 14 states and several … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit rules for EPA against Texas

Posted on June 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s always a pleasure seeing our litigious Attorney General get slapped down by whatever court he’s bothering this week. In the latest turn in a saga pitting environmental regulators in Washington against those in Austin, a panel of federal judges … Continue reading →

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Matagorda smog

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I feel like there are some pieces missing in this discussion. The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking to add Matagorda County to the list of Texas’ smog violators because Gulf breezes that blow through the area send air pollution toward … Continue reading →

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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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