Environment

Republican state Rep. Brooks Landgraf has filed a bill that would ban the outdoor storage of hazardous chemicals within 2,000 feet of homes. The proposal is a response to a large chemical fire at an Odessa-area facility last summer.

The plant, formally known as Ovicula biradiata, is especially notable for being the simultaneous discovery of a new species and genus. It was found with help from the community science app iNaturalist.

Two years after lawmakers created a $10 million program to address leaking wells in rural counties, none of the money has been distributed.

“It is only by going out and documenting these new species can we have a better and more comprehensive understanding of how nature works to sustain all the life that we know on Earth.”

Yesterday, Lubbock Compact announced an update to its Lubbock Environmental Action Plan project, with a new interactive air quality map on its website. Meanwhile, KERA’s Pablo Arauz Peña reports North Texas businesses that contribute to poor air quality could be subject to fines. And Texas' Health and Human Services Commission has asked the state for funding to improve systems and expand staff.

The oil company Occidental Petroleum is planning to open its Stratos carbon capture facility west of Odessa next year, but some worry about the potential environmental consequences of injecting carbon dioxide underground in a region filled with old, forgotten oil wells.

Paxton’s office has accused 3M and DuPont of misrepresenting or concealing the health risks of PFAS, which have been sold for decades for use in consumer products.

The fertilizer was promoted as an environmental win-win for years. An untold number of farmers and ranchers across Texas have spread it on their land.

With inventories, monitoring and planned upgrades in the future, those using tap water in the city of Lubbock don't have much to worry about in terms of potability. But our reporter Olivia O’Rand spoke to local experts who say those outside of the city, on well water, are at risk of ingesting high levels of arsenic.

The proposal comes after the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency said it needs more money to plug wells that are in some instances erupting.