U.S. government researchers found that vibrio cases could increase with changing climate conditions.

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Warming Climate Could Increase Bacterial Impacts on Chesapeake Bay Shellfish, Recreation

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Impact of Climate Change on Vibrio vulnificus Abundance and Exposure Risk

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Vibrio vulnificus Infections From a Previously Nonendemic Area

khou.com - by Melissa Correa - August 27, 2019

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report vibriosis causes 80,000 illnesses and 100 deaths in the U.S. annually. People become infected one of two ways -- either by consuming raw or under-cooked seafood, or by exposing a wound to seawater. The CDC reports a majority of the infections happen from May to October when water temperatures are warmer.

The boom in fracking for shale gas has dramatically increased global methane emissions. Photograph: Andrew Burton/Getty Images

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Ideas and perspectives: is shale gas a major driver of recent increase in global atmospheric methane?

Researchers say boom in shale oil and gas major contributor to climate emergency

theguardian.com - by Jillian Ambrose - August 14, 2019

The boom in the US shale gas and oil may have ignited a significant global spike in methane emissions blamed for accelerating the pace of the climate crisis, according to research . . .

. . . Researchers had previously assumed the “non-traditional” methane was from biological sources such as cows and wetlands, but the latest research suggests unconventional oil and gas from fracking may be playing a significant part.

The theory would support a correlation in the rise of methane in the atmosphere and the boom in fracking across the US over the last decade . . .

Texas accounts for a quarter of wind-powered energy in the United States.

dallasnews.com - by Orla McCaffrey - August 14, 2019

When representatives of a renewable energy company first approached Concho County residents about building a wind farm on their sloping terrain in Central Texas, landowners weren't sold . . .

. . . But a series of nearby wind developments in recent years helped get locals on board, reviving plans for the site 2 miles northwest of Eden, Texas. Construction of a wind farm called Maverick Creek is set to begin in September, with annual wind energy production in the state on track to surpass coal energy for the first time.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

kfdm.com - by Angel San Juan - July 18, 2019

PORT ARTHUR — By this time next year, Port Arthur will have replaced most of its fleet of city buses with electric buses.

Port Arthur will become the first city in Southeast Texas to make the transition to electric city buses.

This transition is being paid for by federal funds from grants to purchase battery-powered electric buses and charging equipment . . .

(CLICK HERE - SEE VIDEO AND READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

ALSO SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION WITHIN THE LINKS BELOW . . .

CLICK HERE - PA gets funding for electric bus fleet

CLICK HERE - 8 FTA Low-No Grant Winners To Purchase 35 Proterra Electric Transit Buses

CLICK HERE - RESEARCH - Killer Heat in the United States: Climate Choices and the Future of Dangerously Hot Days (2019)

CLICK HERE - PAPER - Increased frequency of and population exposure to extreme heat index days in the United States during the 21st century

time.com - by Jamie Ducharme - July 16, 2019

People all across the U.S. have been sweating through heat waves this summer, and new research suggests they should get used to it.

Over the next century, climate change will likely make extreme heat conditions—and their concordant health risks—much more frequent in nearly every part of the U.S., according to a paper published in the journal Environmental Research Communications. By the end of the century, it says, parts of the Gulf Coast states could experience more than 120 days per year that feel like they top 100°F.

A page from the Office of Inspector General report.

CLICK HERE - U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General - Management Alert – DHS Needs to Address Dangerous Overcrowding and Prolonged Detention of Children and Adults in the Rio Grande Valley (16 page .PDF report)

nytimes.com - by Zolan Kanno-Youngs - July 2, 2019

Overcrowded, squalid conditions are more widespread at migrant centers along the southern border than initially revealed, the Department of Homeland Security’s independent watchdog said Tuesday. Its report describes standing-room-only cells, children without showers and hot meals, and detainees clamoring desperately for release.

The findings by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General were released as House Democrats detailed their own findings at migrant holding centers and pressed the agency to answer for the mistreatment not only of migrants but also of their own colleagues, who have been threatened on social media.

Photo by: Felicia Alexander-Branch

Port Arthur residents can call 1-800-451-7746 if they were affected by Friday's dust release.

12newsnow.com - by Raegan Gibson - July 1, 2019

PORT ARTHUR, Texas — Motiva confirmed to 12News a 'petroleum coke dust' release happened on Friday. 

The written statement said the Port Arthur refinery had 'an event' that resulted in the release of the dust. 

A claims line has been set up as a 'cautionary measure' for anyone who was affected by the release. 

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

kfdm.com - by Quentin Hope - May 22, 2019

PORT ARTHUR — Three groups have announce an intent to sue Valero, which is one of the largest refinery companies in the world.

The Port Arthur Community Action Network, Environment Texas and the Sierra Club all claim that Valero is in violation of the Clean Air Act.

According to Valero's own reports, the company has more than 600 violations over the past five years.

View the video news report within the link below . . .

https://kfdm.com/news/local/environmental-groups-hold-joint-press-conference-and-explain-why-theyre-suing-valero

Also see related articles within the links below . . .

CLICK HERE - Group threatens to sue Valero

CLICK HERE - Texas environmentalists plan lawsuit against Valero for pollution

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Union of Concerned Scientists - Underwater - Rising Seas, Chronic Floods, and the Implications for US Coastal Real Estate (28 page .PDF document)

ucsusa.org - June 2018

Sea levels are rising. Tides are inching higher. High-tide floods are becoming more frequent and reaching farther inland. And hundreds of US coastal communities will soon face chronic, disruptive flooding that directly affects people's homes, lives, and properties.

Yet property values in most coastal real estate markets do not currently reflect this risk. And most homeowners, communities, and investors are not aware of the financial losses they may soon face.

This analysis looks at what's at risk for US coastal real estate from sea level rise—and the challenges and choices we face now and in the decades to come.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Solar panels on the roof of South Miami Mayor Philip Stoddard’s energy-efficient home in South Miami on Saturday, April 13, 2019. Stoddard went off the grid for seven days to test the house’s readiness for hurricane season and used only solar panels and two Tesla wall batteries to power his home. Daniel A. Varela ***@***.***

miamiherald.com - by Linda Robertson - April 15, 2019

Hurricane season is coming and Philip Stoddard is ready . . .

. . . Stoddard, a champion of solar energy and green living, took his family on a trial run in preparation for the next Irma or Andrew . . .

. . . He turned off the main power switch located in a panel on the side of his house . . . For the next seven days, he and his family were able to operate the central air-conditioning unit during an unseasonably hot March week, all appliances, computers, lights, TV, solar water heater with an electric on-demand booster, and backyard pond pump, and charge the car without once running out of juice.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Oxbow Calcining, LLC, plant in Port Arthur operates recently. Photo taken Friday, February1, 2019 Photo by Kim Brent/The Enterprise

beaumontenterprise.com - by Kaitlin Bain - April 8, 2019

. . . Oxbow's Port Arthur calcining plant, on a 112-acre waterfront site near the Sabine Neches Ship Channel, uses petroleum coke, a byproduct from the oil refining process, to create calcined coke, which is then sold to make aluminum, titanium dioxide and other industrial products.

Sulfur dioxide and heat are two byproducts of this process.

Oxbow released more than 11,000 tons of sulfur dioxide into the air in 2016, according to calculations by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, making it one of the top 10 emitters of the invisible chemical in the state.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Fire in Texas raging at chemical plant, nearby residents concerned for health - CBS News

cbsnews.com - by Janet Shamlian - March 19, 2019

A chemical plant near Houston has been burning since Sunday morning . . .

. . . The plant owner, Intercontinental Terminals Company (ITC), said while the fire looks ominous, no one is in danger. ITC spokesman David Wascome said they continue to monitor air quality . . .

. . . Jorge Guerra, who lives three miles away, doesn't believe it.

(CLICK HERE - READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

After Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas coast in August 2017, the storm stalled over Houston and dumped as much as 60 inches of rain on some parts of the region.  Katie Hayes Luke for NPR

Lawmakers called the decision “deeply troubling.”

houstonpublicmedia.org - by Davis Land - March 7, 2019

Lawmakers on the U.S. House science committee have questions for federal and Texas officials about a decision not to fly a NASA jet that would have provided more comprehensive data on air pollution after Hurricane Harvey.

Committee members Lizzie Fletcher (D-TX), Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX) and Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ) have requested documents relating to the decision from the Environmental Protection Agency, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and NASA.

The request comes after an L.A. Times article revealed NASA officials offered up a high-tech air-sampling jet to help with pollution monitoring after Hurricane Harvey. The EPA and TCEQ reportedly pushed back on the offer, saying data from the state-of-the-art airplane would not be helpful. Their response informed NASA officials’ decision not to fly.

In Texas, life expectancy varies even more – up to 30 years between some ZIP codes.

Courtesy of UT Southwestern Medical Center

CLICK HERE - INTERACTIVE MAP - Life Expectancy in Texas

CLICK HERE - REPORT - Life Expectancy at Birth in Communities Across Texas: 2005-2014 (26 page .PDF report)

houstonpublicmedia.org - by Katie Watkins - March 4, 2019

Life expectancy in Harris County can vary by about 20 years between ZIP codes,  according to new research by UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas . . .

. . . In Texas, the numbers vary even more – up to 30 years between some ZIP codes. While the statewide life expectancy is 78.5 years, the longest life expectancy is in the 78634 ZIP code in Hutto, Texas (97 years). The 76104 ZIP code in Forth Worth has the shortest (66.7 years).