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Sediment Movement During Hurricane Harvey Could Negatively Impact Future Flooding
Enormous amounts of sediment, or sand and mud, flowed through Houston waterways during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, due in part to modifications made by humans to bayous, rivers and streams over the past century. Harvey was the largest rainfall event in U.S. history, and it moved 27 million cubic meters of sediment, or 16 Astrodomes, through Houston waterways and reservoirs. This could seriously impact future flooding events and be costly to the City of Houston.
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DOJ Argues in Federal Court for Removal of Texas’ Floating Border Barrier
In a court hearing over the barrier near Eagle Pass, the U.S. Justice Department argued it was installed without federal authorization, while lawyers for the state said it notified the proper authorities.
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Do Armed Guards Prevent School Shootings?
Roughly a third of parents with school-age kids are very or extremely worried about gun violence at their child’s school, according to a 2022 survey by The Pew Research Center. The same Pew survey found that roughly half of U.S. parents think armed security in schools is an effective response. Do armed guards — sometimes called school resource officers or school police officers — are actually a deterrent to gun violence and mass shootings?
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A First: Hurricane Hilary Triggers Southern California’s First Tropical Storm Warning Ever
Hurricane Hilary headed for Mexico’s Baja peninsula as a powerful Category 4 storm on Aug. 18, 2023, and was forecast to speed into Southern California at or near tropical storm strength as early as Aug. 20. For the first time ever, the National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning for large parts of Southern California.
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Heat, Drought, Population Growth Stress Aquifers Which Supply Water to Millions of Texans
Diminishing springs and aquifers due to heat, drought and high for demand water highlight the urgency for Central Texas conservation districts to prioritize climate-focused management, potentially involving reduced pumping for sustainability.
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Tech Breakthrough Could Increase States’ Use of Geothermal Power
Lawmakers in some states have been laying the groundwork to add geothermal power to the electrical grid and pump underground heat into buildings. Now, a technological breakthrough could dramatically expand those ambitions — and perhaps unleash a new wave of policies to tap into geothermal sources. If the technology’s promise is fulfilled, geothermal could power as much as 20% of the U.S. grid.
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Why Some Wisconsin Lawmakers and Local Officials Have Changed Their Minds About Letting Undocumented Immigrants Drive
“If we suddenly kicked out all of the people here, the undocumented, our dairy farms would collapse,” one lawmaker said. “We have to come up with a solution.”
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FEMA Maps Said They Weren’t in a Flood Zone. Then Came the Rain.
The most common reference for flood risk are the flood insurance rate maps, also known as 100-year floodplain maps, that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, produces. They designate so-called special flood hazard areas that have a roughly 1 percent chance of inundation in any given year. Properties within those zones are subject to more stringent building codes and regulations that, among other things, require anyone with a government-backed mortgage to carry flood insurance. Flaws in federal flood maps leave millions unprepared. Some are trying to fix that.
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DHS: Additional $374.9 Million in Funding to Boost State, Local Cybersecurity
State and local governments face increasingly sophisticated cyber threats to their critical infrastructure and public safety. On Monday, DHS announced the availability of $374.9 million in grant funding for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 State and Local Cybersecurity Grant Program (SLCGP).
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Bipartisan Texan Push in Congress to Boost Semiconductors, a Crucial Industry in the State
Republicans like Sen. Ted Cruz and Democrats like Rep. Colin Allred — opponents in the 2024 election — propose streamlining environmental reviews to promote investment and expansion by chipmakers.
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Body Found Stuck in Buoys Texas Installed in the Rio Grande
Texas authorities believe the person drowned upstream and floated into the buoys near Eagle Pass. Mexico criticized Texas’ placement of the buoys along the river.
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One in Five Texans Lives in a Floodplain
Almost 6 million Texans, or about 20% of the population, live in an area susceptible to flooding and one-fifth of the state’s land is in a 100-year floodplain. Texas launched a statewide effort to harden Texas against floods and rising sea levels.
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Federal Government Is Challenging Texas Setting Up Buoys in the Rio Grande – Here’s Why These Kinds of Border Blockades Wind Up Complicating Immigration Enforcement
The Rio Grande is the site of a legal battle between the U.S. federal government and the state of Texas regarding the right to enact blockades in the river. The U.S. Justice Department announced on July 24, 2023, that it filed a civil lawsuit against Texas for illegally placing a floating buoy barrier in a section of the Rio Grande that runs about 1,000 feet, or 304 meters, long.
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DOJ Files Complaint Against Texas Over Placing Floating Buoy Barrier in the Rio Grande
The Justice Department on Monday filed a civil complaint against the State of Texas because the state has built a floating barrier, consisting of buoys strung together, in the Rio Grande River without the federal authorization that is legally required under the Rivers and Harbors Act.
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Texas Investigating Claim that State Troopers Were Told to Push Migrants Back into the Rio Grande and Deny Them Water
The Office of the Inspector General is investigating the claims, which include pushing small children and women with nursing babies back into the river and turning away a 4-year-old girl who later passed out on the riverbank from the heat.
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