UPDATE

Officials: ‘About 100′ people may have had contact with the Texas Ebola patient

WASHINGTON  POST   OCTOBER 2, 2014  10:03 AM

Texas health officials said Thursday that there are "about 100" people who may have had contact with Thomas Eric Duncan, the man who is being treated in a Dallas-area hospital for Ebola.

A patient was diagnosed with Ebola on Sept. 30 at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas.(Photo: Mike Stone, Getty Images)

THE WASHINGTON POST

By Mark Berman October 1 at 3:15 PM

The man in Texas who tested positive for Ebola told hospital officials he had traveled from West Africa when he sought treatment on Friday, but that information was not relayed to everyone treating him at that time, authorities said Wednesday.

As a result, the man was diagnosed with a “low-grade, common viral disease” and sent home that day, said Mark C. Lester, executive vice president of the health-care system that includes Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital, the Dallas facility treating the Ebola patient.

“Regretfully, that information was not fully communicated throughout the full team,” Lester said during a news conference Wednesday. “As a result, the full import of that information wasn’t factored into the clinical decision-making.”

Updated with link to CDC statement (below)

The WASHINGTON post September 30 at 5:29 PM

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed the first case of Ebola that's been diagnosed in the United States.

The Texas Department of Health Services said in a statement that the patient is at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas. The patient -- "an adult with a recent history of travel to West Africa" -- was admitted into an isolation unit at the hospital Sunday after developing Ebola-like symptoms "days after returning to Texas from West Africa."

The test, the Texas health department said, was conducted at the state public health laboratory in Austin and later confirmed by the CDC.

The state health lab got the ability to test for Ebola only last month, according to Carrie Williams, a spokeswoman with the Texas Department of State Health Services.

Link to full story

reuters.com - By Ryan McNeill, Deborah J. Nelson and Duff Wilson - September 4, 2014

As the seas rise, a slow-motion disaster gnaws at America’s shores

Part 1: A Reuters analysis finds that flooding is increasing along much of the nation’s coastline, forcing many communities into costly, controversial struggles with a relentless foe.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

click2houston.com - by Jace Larson - August 6, 2014

Harris County to spray for mosquitoes by air

HOUSTON -

A mosquito has tested positive for the Chikungunya virus and nine people have tested positive for the West Nile virus, according to the Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services.

One person has tested positive with the Chikungunya virus, but that that person was infected elsewhere and brought the virus to Harris County.

The county's Mosquito Control Division says nine people have tested positive for the West Nile virus, but none of the cases have been fatal. More than 730 samples have tested positive for West Nile.

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(ALSO READ SAME ARTICLE HERE)

Image: A wind farm in the Texas panhandle. Credit David Bowser for The New York Times

nytimes.com - July 23rd, 2014 - Matthew L. Wald

The wind is so relentless that a week can go by before it is calm enough for a crane operator to install the 30-ton blades atop the 260-foot towers at the Panhandle 2 wind farm here. It’s worth the wait; a single turbine at the farm can produce 40 percent more energy than an average one.

But turning wind into electricity is one thing; moving the energy to a profitable market is another.

(VIEW COMPLETE ARTICLE)

therecordlive.com - July 31, 2014

There is no question the petrochemical industry helped build Southeast Texas. But on the flip side of that, residents sometimes don’t know what kind of substances are in the air we breathe or what lies just under our feet. . . .

. . . Theis discovered an unmarked pipeline running through his lot next to his home at 181 Ridgewood while digging for a swimming pool. . . .

. . . In addition to the possibility of an explosion, Theis said his wife has been “very, very sick” since moving there over a year ago.

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A vote projected on a large video screen above the city council shows unanimous approval to send a citizen-led petition to a public ballot scheduled for November, Wednesday, in Denton, Texas. TONY GUTIERREZ — AP

abcnews.go.com - AP - by Emily Schmall - July 16, 2014

The council governing a North Texas city that sits atop a large natural gas reserve rejected a bid early Wednesday that would have made it the first city in the state to ban further permitting of hydraulic fracturing in the community.

Denton City Council members voted down the petition 5-2 after eight hours of public testimony, sending the proposal to a public ballot in November.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

(ALSO SEE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IN RELATED ARTICLES WITHIN THE LINKS BELOW)

http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/07/15/5973163/denton-fracking-ban-hearing-draws.html?rh=1

Photo Credit: Kumar Appaiah

submitted by Albert Gomez

energyefficiencymarkets.com - by Elisa Wood - July 10, 2014

The University of Texas at Austin houses what is often described as the most integrated and largest microgrid in the US,  a  model for saving energy and money.

Built in 1929 as a steam plant, the facility has evolved to provide 100 percent of the power, heat and cooling for a 20-million square-foot campus with 150 buildings.

The university is known for its premiere research facilities, which demand high quality, reliable power.  And its microgrid has delivered with 99.9998 percent reliability over the last 40 years.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

submitted by Albert Gomez

environmentalleader.com - July 11, 2014

Dow Chemical’s claims to water rights from Texas’ Brazos River are pitting the manufacturing giant against farmers, cities, power plants and local water authorities as the river’s water supply diminishes, the Texas Tribune reports.

Dow is the Brazos’ largest and oldest user, the latter of which gives the company priority against other users. . . But water is increasingly in short supply as the drought worsens and the river’s users demand increasing amounts of water.

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(ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE HERE)

submitted by Albert Gomez

wjla.com - ABC - July 7, 2014

12newsnow.com - by Angel San Juan - July 3, 2014

PORT ARTHUR - ZeoGas is a start-up company that wants to convert natural gas into methanol, which will then be turned into gasoline. It's interested in building a plant in Port Arthur along Highway 73 near the city's water plant, but families living nearby, in the El Vista area, don't want it. . .

. . . They say they've been promised job opportunities before and have just gotten industry that's harmed their health.

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submitted by Margery Schab  

Texas is among the leaders nationally in the creation of clean-energy jobs.  OCI Solar

bizjournals.com - by Sanford Nowlin - March 14, 2014

Clean-energy production and energy-efficient transportation projects created nearly 6,400 jobs in Texas last year, according to a new report by nonpartisan business group Environmental Entrepreneurs, or E2. 

The Lone Star State ranked No. 2 behind California, which generated around 15,400 clean-energy jobs in 2013.

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REPORT - E2 - Clean Energy Jobs: 2013 Year in Review and Q4 Report (12 page .PDF report)