Environmental News and Views Vol. 1

Hello! First and foremost, Happy Texas Independence Day!

Secondly, thank you all so much for the reactions and positive feedback to my first Sunset Dispatch. There is a lot to keep up with, and a lot at stake. I will continue to try to do my bit.

With this article, I am introducing a new content series I call Environmental News and Views. Rather than focusing on one broad topic as in my Dispatches, I will instead provide brief, compact updates on any number of issues. 

So with that, let's get started!

Sunset Review Update. I have been lucky to up close to this process on a couple of fronts, and I can tell you the Sunset staff are working very hard to get their hands around the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and other state natural resource agencies. The TCEQ issues they are grappling with do not depart from what I and others have been predicting, namely trying to answer the familiar questions around its permitting and enforcement authority.

Just before Christmas, a letter from a coalition of environmental groups began circulating publicly that made a number of recommendations to the Sunset Commission. Many of the issues raised are perennials. One issue raised in the letter, however, bears additional comment.

Specifically, the group calls for a ban on TCEQ being able to use state resources to challenge “settled science” and the federal government. In making this suggestion, the group cites work TCEQ, and others, have done over the years to explore EPA’s scientific justifications, such as those used to support lowering the ozone standard. TCEQ has posted examples of some of those research projects here. 

In my mind, it would be deeply concerning to tie the State’s hands in this fashion. It would impair an open, honest, and fact-based debate on the merits of a proposed regulation. More ominously, though, the recommendation seems dangerously close to silencing dissent.

In other Sunset news, expect the full Sunset Advisory Commission to meet in June to receive staff reports and public comment. This will end the “confidential” comment period, and a public participation process will follow. So, stay tuned!

EPA Expediting NAAQs Reviews. In the twilight of the previous administration, the EPA announced that it would not change the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQs) for particulate matter and ozone. Predictably, in the whiplash inducing environment we live in, the current administration announced it would reconsider those actions.

On February 4th, the EPA’s Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee Particulate Matter Review Panel issued a draft report endorsing lowering the standard. The panel’s work can be found here. 

The current standard is 12 micrograms per cubic meter. Smart people expect the standard to be lowered to somewhere between eight (8) and (10) ten. The lowest standard, based on current design values, could result in 90 percent of the United States’ population living in “bad” air quality. 

For Texas, the lowest on this scale could mean that Houston/Galveston/Brazoria, Laredo, the Lower Rio Grande Valley, San Antonio, Austin-Round Rock, Dallas-Fort Worth, Beaumont/Port Arthur, Corpus Christi, and El Paso are designated as “nonattainment” for the PM 2.5 standard. Lower PM 2.5 standards could affect different industries, depending on where they are. This issue could have wide ranging effects and bears very close monitoring.

In Primary Election News....Chairman Birdwell (Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Economic Development), Chairman Landgraf (House Committee on Environmental Regulation), and Chairman T. King (House Committee on Natural Resources) either ran unopposed or won their primary contests. None of them have opponents in the General Election.

Recently appointed Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, Joan Huffman, ran unopposed, and as of this writing, is awaiting the result of a too-close-to-call Democratic contest to see who she will face in November. Her House counterpart, Dr. Greg Bonnen, also ran unopposed and has a challenger this fall.

Finally, it appears that all of the members of the Sunset Advisory Commission won their primaries. Senator Lucio, of course, has announced his retirement, so Lieutenant Governor Patrick will have to appoint a replacement.

Perhaps with the primaries out of the way we will soon see Interim Charges for legislative committees. Watch this space for an update.

Thanks for reading this inaugural edition of Environmental News and Views . If you have any questions or I can help in any way, please let me know.

XXX