Clean Air

Dallas City Council approved regulations requiring public hearings for concrete and asphalt batch plants via a Specific Use Permit. Applauded by environmentalists, the change addresses equity and pollution concerns and gives communities a voice in plant siting. A second phase considers buffer zones to limit impacts on sensitive areas.

Texas regulators advanced a haze reduction plan for national parks without new pollution limits, dismissing federal and environmentalist concerns. The plan doesn't mandate coal plants to adopt pollution-reducing technologies. Environmental groups expect federal intervention due to the plan’s inadequacies. Texas argues the measures are unnecessary and cost-prohibitive.

After moving to Midlothian, Laura Hunt's daughter developed a severe respiratory condition, prompting Hunt to investigate potential links to local cement plant emissions. She founded Midlothian Breathe, a group advocating for DIY air monitoring using low-cost sensors to track air quality and hold polluters accountable.

Molly Rooke, a Dallas Sierra Club activist, encountered hazardous abandoned oil wells on her family ranch. A Texas judge halted the Texas Railroad Commission's COVID-19 waivers for oil and gas companies, which bypassed environmental rules. Public Citizen's lawsuit emphasizes landowner rights and cleanup responsibilities amid industry bankruptcies.

Downwinders at Risk launched SharedAirDFW, a network of air quality monitors in Dallas-Fort Worth to track particulate pollution. Partnering with local institutions, they aim to gather data for advocating relocation of polluters. The project seeks 100 monitors and open data access to improve community health awareness and decision-making.

A citizens' group in Garland is legally contesting a concrete batch plant that they claim will worsen existing pollution linked to severe health issues. This effort is part of a long-term campaign to address contamination by industries, highlighted by recent EPA findings of hazardous lead levels near a former battery plant.

Over the past decade, Texas reduced environmental protection funding by 35% despite increased industrial activity. This ranks Texas second among 30 states in funding cuts, which occurred as state revenue grew. The Environmental Integrity Project highlights that cuts coincide with federal efforts to shift more environmental oversight to states.

While the nation grapples with the pandemic and racial injustice protests, the Trump administration continues to roll back environmental protections, reversing over 60 rules since 2017. Key rollbacks include changes to emissions rules, wetland protections, and wildlife protections. Various resources track these changes, such as Harvard and Columbia Law Schools.

Audubon Texas is launching a Clean Energy Future Campaign to address climate change impacts on birds by transitioning to clean energy in DFW. Events in Dallas (Sept. 18) and Fort Worth (Sept. 24) aim to recruit volunteers from all demographics to support clean energy initiatives and habitat preservation efforts.

A local environmental watchdog wants to teach kids some new tricks. Like paying attention to what they're breathing. Kids-U provides after school and summer programs for kindergarten through 8th graders at 12 apartment complexes in low-income neighborhoods in DFW.