Southwest (AZ NM OK TX)

Texas Prisoners Struggle To Endure Heat Wave Without Air Conditioning

"A deadly heat wave continues across the Southwest, and an often forgotten group of people affected are prisoners. Many inmates struggle to stay cool in aging facilities, including in Texas — where some 100,000 prisoners live in large facilities that lack air conditioning."

Source: Texas Public Radio, 07/25/2023

"How A Saudi Firm Tapped A Gusher Of Water In Drought-Stricken Arizona"

"For nearly a decade, the state of Arizona has leased this rural terrain west of Phoenix to a Saudi-owned company, allowing it to pump all the water it needs to grow the alfalfa hay — a crop it exports to feed the kingdom’s dairy cows. And, for years, the state did not know how much water the company was consuming."

Source: Washington Post, 07/17/2023

Industry Wants New Pipeline on Navajo Land Scarred by Decades of Drilling

"For the last several months, one of the nation’s largest pipeline operators has gone from one local government meeting on the Navajo Nation to another, outlining plans for what could end up being the country’s longest hydrogen pipeline."

Source: Inside Climate News, 07/14/2023

Houston To Relocate People Living Near Polluted Union Pacific Rail Yard

"Houston plans to spend millions of dollars to relocate residents from neighborhoods located near a rail yard polluted by a cancer-linked wood preservative that has been blamed for an increase in cancer cases, the city’s mayor announced Thursday."

Source: AP, 07/14/2023

"New Mexico Trail Clash Echoes Culture War Across US West"

"Physiotherapist Spencer Bushnell lives less than a mile from farmer Carlos Arguello in Taos, New Mexico. But they are worlds apart on proposals to lace the foothills they love with up to 71 miles of mountain bike and hiking trails."

Source: Reuters, 07/10/2023

Deer Park Chemical Fire In 2019 Could Have Been Prevented, CSB Finds

"A massive Houston-area chemical fire that burned for three days in 2019 could have been prevented if proper procedures were in place at the chemical storage facility run by the Intercontinental Terminals Co., according to an investigation released Thursday by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board."

Source: Texas Tribune, 07/10/2023

"The Colorado River Flooded Chemehuevi Land. Decades Later, the Tribe Still Struggles to Take Its Share of Water. "

"The Chemehuevi’s reservation fronts about 30 miles of the Colorado River, yet 97% of the tribe’s water stays in the river, much of it used by Southern California cities. The tribe isn’t paid for it."

Source: ProPublica/HCN, 07/06/2023

"Extreme Heat Is Already Straining the Mexican Power Grid"

"During the heat wave that hit Mexico and Texas in the last two weeks, some states in Mexico saw temperatures exceed 113 degrees, and more than 20 people died from heat stroke. The record-high temperatures have put enormous pressure on the country’s electric system, increasing the electricity demand."

Source: Inside Climate News, 06/30/2023

New Mexico Regulators Fine Oil Producer $40 Million For Flaring Gas

"New Mexico oilfield and air quality regulators on Thursday announced unprecedented state fines against a Texas-based oil and natural gas producer on accusations that the company flouted local pollution reporting and control requirements by burning off vast amounts of natural gas in a prolific energy-production zone in the southeast of the state."

Source: AP, 06/30/2023

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