"Texas officials granted an air permit for a proposed Corpus Christi power plant Wednesday despite calls from federal regulators to delay approval of the controversial request.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality voted 2-0 in favor of the permit for the Las Brisas Energy Center, which would power 650,000 homes by burning petroleum coke, a coal-like oil refinery byproduct. The permit, which clears the way for the plant's construction, describes the facility's emissions and how it will limit them.

The approval created yet another divide between the TCEQ and the Environmental Protection Agency, which had asked the state commission to withhold the permit until they resolved several issues with the application."

Matthew Tresaugue reports for the Houston Chronicle January 26, 2011. [2]