Photo by Terrence Henry/StateImpact Texas
East Texas landowner Mike Bishop is suing a state agency for allowing the Keystone XL pipeline to cross his property.
Mike Bishop is fired up. He’s standing with about a dozen protestors and half that many reporters in front of a state office building, waving a lawsuit in his hands.
āItās beyond me why regulatory agencies and elected officials canāt say, āYou know what? I made a mistake. Iām so sorry. You know what weāre going to do? Weāre going to correct that mistake.'” he intones, slamming his fists.
Bishop is unhappy with how state agencies are handling pipelines in Texas, specifically the Keystone XL pipeline, which will soon cross his land in Nacodoches County.
So unhappy, in fact, that he’s suing the state. Continue Reading →
Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
A coal miner at a Mitt Romney campaign rally at American Energy Corportation on August 14, 2012 in Beallsville, Ohio.
One of the few coal power plants still being planned in Texas is facing setbacks.
The controversial White Stallion Energy CenterĀ in Matagorda County had been working with the Texas grid to examine how it will work once its completed, a process called a grid interconnection study. Itās a typical requirement for new power plants, along with an air permit. But earlier this fall the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) cancelled that study.
āThat process has taken longer than we anticipated,” Randy Bird, the Chief Operating Officer for the coal power project.Ā “And most of the delay was on our side. Because of market conditions.ā
Those market conditions are making coal power unattractive in Texas, and the nation. Low prices for natural gas (thanks to the widespread adoption of hyrdaulic fracturing, or “fracking”) and declining accessibility and quality of domestic coal have made natural gas the preferred option for new power.Ā Continue Reading →