Posted on · The 2016 Republican National Convention concluded last night (July 21, 2016), with Donald Trump accepting his party's nomination for President. On this edition of Houston Matters, News 88.7’s politics and government reporter Andrew Schneider joins us from Cleveland to discuss the Texas GOP delegation’s week. (Above: Texas delegates cast their votes on the floor of […]
Posted on · Last month, two freight trains collided head-on and erupted in flames near Amarillo. And this month is the anniversary of a far worse train catastrophe in Canada. The accidents are why some community groups say more needs to be done in Houston to make railways safer, especially when it comes to the transport of one […]
Posted on · Last week, following fatal police shootings of black men captured on video in Louisiana and Minnesota, Robert Muhammad, a Nation of Islam representative and student minister, suggested a number of ways to improve the relationship between law enforcement and the black community, including more face-to-face contact, more community involvement and more de-escalation and tension-reduction training […]
Posted on · With all the flooding the Houston region has experienced recently, News 88.7 continues to investigate what might be making flooding worse and what might help mitigate flood damage in the future. Energy and environment reporter Dave Fehling has the latest on one effort — a way to slow down flood waters before they ever get […]
Posted on · The U.S. Supreme Court recently (May 16, 2016) sent Zubik v. Burwell back to lower courts. A ruling in the Texas case (which includes challenges from Houston Baptist University and East Texas Baptist University) would have clarified whether an Obama Administration mandate for some employers to provide birth control benefits to employees runs afoul of […]
Posted on · On today's program, we continue our 2nd annual "State of Houston" series – exploring the state of Greater Houston's economy, transportation, health, education, environment, politics and culture. Today, we look at what's happening here in energy and the environment, with News 88.7’s energy and environment reporter Dave Fehling.
Posted on · Tenaris is one the world's largest oilfield services companies, specializing in manufacturing steel pipe. And it's building an enormous new mill to do just that in Bay City, about an hour southwest of Houston. It will be operational next year (2017). But why build such a huge new operation at a time when oil prices […]
Posted on · A Houston-based company has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to carry out a project designed to modernize a portion of the country's electric grid and be able to deliver wind-generated energy from the Texas panhandle, Oklahoma and southwest Kansas to more than 1.5 million homes across several states. DOE […]
Posted on · A worker was injured Saturday morning when an explosion at the Pasadena Refining Systems Inc. plant started a fire, sending smoke plumes into the Pasadena air. A portion of the Houston Ship Channel was closed briefly while the Coast Guard investigated for any potential chemical releases. According to the EPA, the plant owned by Petrobras, […]
Posted on · A worker was injured Saturday morning when an explosion at the Pasadena Refining Systems Inc. plant started a fire, sending smoke plumes into the Pasadena air. A portion of the Houston Ship Channel was closed briefly while the Coast Guard investigated for any potential chemical releases. According to the EPA, the plant owned by Petrobras, […]
Posted on · As Houston Public Media reported last month, work is now under way to repair two dams that hold back storm water on the west side of Houston. We wanted to know why some experts say the dams are the most critical flood protection Houston has and why a failure could mean catastrophic damage to thousands […]
Posted on · A Houston-based think tank argues the greatest economic challenge America faces today is a lack of affordable housing. The Center for Opportunity Urbanism examines this challenge in a recent report entitled America’s Housing Crisis. On this edition of Houston Matters, we learn more from Anne Snyder, a fellow at the center. We also talk with […]
Posted on · Oil prices are down because of simple economics: more supply than demand, which means there's a lot of oil that can't be used. Instead, it must be stored. And as it turns out, an increasing amount of it is being held right here in Houston. Millions and millions of barrels of it. Dave Fehling, News […]
Posted on · We talk a lot about master planned communities like The Woodlands — carefully codified, mapped out, zoned, restricted — all with the goal of creating the best possible quality of life for its residents. It's a century or more too late for the city of Houston to operate like that. We even, at times, celebrate […]
Posted on · Texas and West Virginia are leading more than two dozen states who are challenging President Obama's Clean Power Plan, which establishes standards to reduce carbon dioxide emissions 32 percent from 2005 levels by 2030. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia last month denied a request from Texas and other states to […]