news & announcements
Recycling trashed: City audit confirms 1,300 tons of recyclables were sent to a landfill
KHOU News Houston: The 12-page report identified a total of 532 mishandled incidents across every sector of the city from January to June.
Commissioners Pass Resolution for Dallas County Environmental Protection
NBC News DFW: The resolution received unanimous support from all five Dallas County Commissioners. Republican J.J. Koch joined the four Democrats in voting for the measure.
TCE Statement on Dumping of Houston Residents’ Recycling
Press release: TCE calls for full disclosure and accountability from Houston’s solid waste department.
ExxonMobil’s Gulf Coast Growth Ventures project gets TCEQ approval
Corpus Christi Caller Times: Environmental groups warned of toxic emissions coming from the plant and had hoped the TCEQ would have required more air-quality monitoring at the facility’s fence line.
Texas legislature passes two waste permitting laws
Waste Dive: Texas is known for being less restrictive than some states when it comes to solid waste permitting — especially for landfills — so the passage of these seemingly minor laws is notable.
Lawmakers passed Hurricane Harvey aid, but ignored its cause, environmental advocates say
Fort Worth Star-Telegram: As lawmakers talked this session about the damage and destruction their communities suffered when Hurricane Harvey struck in 2017, environmental advocates said two words were missing from the conversation: climate change.
Slow Gains for the Environment at the Capitol
Austin Chronicle: While the 86th was not a halcyon session for environmental progress – no surprise, alas, in Texas – there was indeed some limited improvement.
2019 Legislature Wraps up with Wins and Losses
From our blog: Texas Campaign for the Environment worked with neighbors of waste facilities or proposed waste facilities to get two good bills passed into law. We also helped defeat some legislation that would have made it more difficult to oppose pollution permits and pre-empt local governments when it came to waste facilities and tree ordinances, for instance.
Texas Lege Passes Bill Allowing Authorities to File Felony Charges Against Pipeline Protesters
San Antonio Current: In the closing hours of the legislative session, Texas lawmakers voted to approve a controversial measure that would make it a felony for protesters to interrupt the construction of oil pipelines.
You Could Get Prison Time for Protesting a Pipeline in Texas—Even If It’s on Your Land
Mother Jones: The fight against a Texas pipeline just got a little more challenging. The Texas Senate passed legislation that makes interfering with pipelines and other oil and gas infrastructure a crime punishable by up to a year in prison and $10,000 in fines.