Terrence Henry reports on energy and the environment for StateImpact Texas. His radio, print and television work has appeared in the New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, NPR, The Texas Tribune, The History Channel and other outlets.
He has previously worked at The Washington Post and The Atlantic. He earned a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations from Brigham Young University.
La Nina is gone. Is it time to break out the umbrellas?
It’s official. The La Niña weather pattern, one of the big factors behind the Texas drought, has finally left, according to a report out this week from the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center.
But will she come back? It’s a vital question, because the last two years we’ve seen back-to-back La Niñas. That resulted in the worst single-year drought on record in Texas.
This time, the National Weather Service is predicting La Niña won’t return. In today’s report, they say that “the current and evolving conditions, combined with model forecasts, suggest that La Niña is unlikely to re-develop later this year.” (Then again, forecasters predicted an abnormally dry winter for Texas, which thankfully didn’t turn out to be the case.)
At the same time, forecasters are predicting that the drought won’t go away completely anytime soon. Continue Reading →
Lone Camp Volunteer Fire Department chief Charlie Sims leads his crew while fighting a wildfire on September 1, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
A volunteer firefighter reacts as a wildfire jumps a fire line while fighting a wildfire on September 1, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
Lone Camp Volunteer Fire Department fire fighter Ted Hale fights a wildfire on September 1, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
U.S. Forest Service firefighter Erik Rodriguez battles a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Strawn, Texas. More than 160 area homes were destroyed in the wildfires that have been fueled by dry conditions, high winds, and low humidity.
Volunteer firefighters battle a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
A bull tries to escape a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
Fires burn in Graford, Texas on April 19, 2011.
A bull tries to escape a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Graford, Texas.
Emergency crews drop fire retardent slurry while battling a running wildfire that is threatning homes on April 19, 2011 in Strawn, Texas.
Emergency crews battle a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Strawn, Texas.
Emergency crews fly over a destroyed home while battling a running wildfire on April 19, 2011 in Strawn, Texas.
Remnants of burned down homes around the east side of Lake Bastop outside Bastrop. TX Tuesday September 6, 2011.
Firefighting helicopters dump water and flame retardant after loading up with water from a pond at Lost Pines Golf Club as they fight a fire in Bastrop State Park September 6, 2011 in Bastrop, Texas.
Firefighting helicopters load up with water from a pond at Lost Pines Golf Club as they fight a fire in Bastrop State Park September 6, 2011 in Bastrop, Texas.
Fire fighters from the Coppell Fire Department hit hot spots on a burned down house with water as they go to the wildfire-affected areas September 7, 2011 in Bastrop, Texas.
Fire fighters from the Coppell Fire Department prepare to hit a burned down house with water as they go to the wildfire-affected areas September 7, 2011 in Bastrop, Texas.
Coppell Fire Department (Dallas, TX area) hit hot spots with water as they go to the wildfire affected areas around Bastrop. TX Wednesday September 7, 2011.
oppell Fire Department (Dallas, TX area) hit hot spots with water as they go to the wildfire affected areas around Bastrop. TX Wednesday September 7, 2011.
Coppell Fire Department (Dallas, TX area) hit hot spots with water as they go to the wildfire affected areas around Bastrop. TX Wednesday September 7, 2011.
The first wildfires of 2012 are still burning in West Texas, but the Texas Forest Service says they’re mostly contained at this point. It’s a good time to take a look back to the record season of wildfires last year. All told wildfires in 2011 burned nearly four million acres, almost three thousand homes, and took two lives. In the slideshow above, you can see up close the toll they took.
Courtesy of Dave Irving via Flickr Creative Commons
Feral hogs, an invasive species, are wreaking havoc across Texas.
StateImpact Texas will be invading a special session of KUT Radio Austin’s Views and Brews this Monday at the Cactus Cafe. It’s a regular panel hosted by KUT where we discuss the issues and art of our time, over beer (hence the “Brews” with the “Views”).
Our very own Mose Buchele will lead a discussion that will look at questions like: What do we mean by invasive species? How do they get here? What is their impact on the environment when they arrive? We’ll talk about these questions and also look at the ways we adapt to their presence, from making them into delicacies to hunting them for sport. And you’ll have the chance to ask questions and add thoughts of your own to the discussion.
On Monday, May 7th at 6 p.m. you can join us and hear from experts who hunt, study and yes, sometimes eat, invasive species. Doors open at 5:30. It’s free and open to the public, but seating is limited so we suggest getting there early.
Views and Brews: Invasive Species and Why We Love Them With Salt
Despite the fact that it’s been a relatively dry April for much of the state, particularly Central Texas, the slow improvement of the drought continues, though the news isn’t all good.
The latest numbers released today by the the National Drought Monitor show that parts of the state are still making their way out of drought. Less than nine percent of the state is in the worst stage of drought, “exceptional,” while 17 percent of the state is drought-free. A year ago, after a dismally dry winter, over 17 percent of the state was in the worst stage of drought.
But while there’s been some improvement in the past week or two, there’s also been a little bit of a turn back. While last week 63 percent of the state was in some stage of drought, this week that number’s gone up to nearly 67 percent.
Houston oil and gas attorney Roland Sledge (R) is running for an open seat on the Railroad Commission of Texas. (Which, despite its name, has nothing to do with railroads. It’s the state regulator of the oil and gas industry.)
Roland Sledge also doesn’t believe in peeing on an electric fence.
It’s true. Sledge has even put together a campaign video about it. (It’s a reference to a saying attributed to Will Rogers.) In the video, Sledge says that he agrees with Rogers when he said: “There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. And the rest have to pee on the electric fence.” (Can you guess which kind of candidate Sledge says he isn’t?)
What, ultimately, urinating on such a fence has to do with the Railroad Commission isn’t explicitly clear. Nor is the connection obvious between the commission and disgraced Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, or trillions of dollars in bank bailout money, for that matter. But it all makes for entertaining viewing, which you can do above.
Now there’s an update to the page, so you can see the latest illustration of how the drought progressed, and how conditions are slowly improving across much of the state. What was once a sea of red (indicating the worst stage of drought) is now mostly a mix of white, yellow and orange, all indicating lighter levels or no drought at all.
The page also looks into the hard choices the state has to make about water, drought or not; the pros and cons of the policy decisions that need to be made, and also allows you to share your stories.
Two fires in West Texas this week have burned over 24,000 acres.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has approved funds to help battle two large wildfires in West Texas that have been burning for more than a week. The request for the funds came from the state. The approval means FEMA funds can pay 75 percent of eligible state and local costs for fighting the wildfires.
The Texas Forest Service says two fires at the Livermore Ranch Complex have burned over 24,000 acres. The complex is nearly two hundred miles southeast of El Paso.
The bigger of the two fires is near the Davis Mountain Resort, where about 150 residents live. That fire was said to be about 30 percent contained as of this morning.
Last week the Forest Service unveiled a new online tool that allows users to find the wildfire risk in their area. You can view it here.
KUT’s Laura Rice contributed reporting to this post.
This summer may not be nearly as hot as last year, but blackouts aren't completely off the table.
Today the group that monitors the Texas Electric Grid came out with a new assessment of the state’s power reserves heading into the summer. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) says Texas is still at risk of rolling blackouts. But the likelihood has diminished as conservation has ramped up and more energy companies have brought “mothballed” power plants back online.
Those plants are operating thanks in part to the low cost of natural gas, which makes it economically attractive to run less efficient natural gas power plants. All but one of the state’s mothballed plants that are being brought back online are natural gas-fired plants.
In a program called the “Founder Well Participation Program,” Aubrey McClendon was allowed to purchase an interest in each well the company owned, up to 2.5 percent. McClendon then went and borrowed against those future potential profits, which totaled more than a billion dollars of loans.
In a statement, Chesapeake says that McClendon and the company have agreed on a date for early termination of the investment program. That will happen “on June 30, 2014, 18 months before the end of its current term on December 31, 2015. Mr. McClendon will receive no compensation of any kind in connection with the early termination of the FWPP,” according to the company.
Bloomberg says that according to an emailed statement from Chesapeake, “McClendon will not be relinquishing any of the well stakes he already holds.” The company says that in McClendon’s place they’ll look for “an independent, Non-Executive Chairman in the near future.”
The Wall Street Journal’s energy reporter Russell Gold tweeted a reaction that is likely felt by many: “Feels like an era is ending.” The company’s stocks are up nearly ten percent on the news, however.
Andrew Zimmern thinks you should stop eating state fair food and start eating donkeys.
Andrew Zimmern is best known for eating things like bats, spiders and even rotten fish. He’s the host of Bizarre Foods on the Travel Channel, where he travels the world to eat exotic dishes. But Zimmern is also a thinker and something of a food activist. I sat down with him at the Austin Food and Wine Festival this past weekend to discuss his ideas about some of the food sustainability and environmental issues facing the world – and Texas.
Q: We’ve seen you eat everything on television from larvae to spiders.
A: Fermented beetle anus. I bet that’s probably the first time someone has mentioned that little piece of deliciousness in an interview.
Q: I was gonna save it for the end. How does one prepare that anyways?
A: Very, very carefully.
Q: Having eaten all of these exotic things, is there anything in the U.S. that we should open our minds to? Things we don’t normally eat?
A: Tons. We could start with my favorite food that isn’t eaten here, which is donkey. This is an animal that grows to maturity quickly, is a very forgiving eater, easy to raise, a disease-resistant species, and it’s delicious. Continue Reading →
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