"DALLAS -- Texas has stopped inspecting 44% of the dams in the state, following passage last year of a state law that exempted most privately owned dams from safety requirements. Now, as a drought dries up large portions of the Southwest, some dam-safety experts and officials are questioning the law, saying the dry spell is leaving webs of cracks along the surface of earthen dams that may make them weaker—and prone to triggering floods—when rains eventually fill them up again."

"Hauling company that dumped toxic drilling waste over eight miles of road and never told authorities faces formal enforcement action."

"A dramatic jump in the number of earthquakes in Oklahoma to a rate never seen there by scientists before, appears to be caused by a small number of wells where wastewater associated with oil and gas production is injected into the ground, a study released on Thursday said."

"GARDENDALE, Tex. — From the window of her tin-roofed trailer, Judy Vargas can glimpse a miraculous world. It is as close as the dust kicked up by the trucks barreling by but seems as distant as Mars."

"In 1957, author John Graves decided to take a canoe trip down the upper Brazos River before a series of dams would turn his favorite stretch of river into a string of lakes. Graves feared that his beloved river would be squeezed dry if five proposed flood-control dams were built in the upper Brazos."

"DENTON, Texas — Natural gas money has been good to this Texas city: It has new parks, a new golf course and miles of grassy soccer fields. The business district is getting a makeover, and the airport is bustling, too."

"HOUSTON — Texas’ oil and gas regulatory agency has instituted a blanket policy barring staff members from doing media interviews, raising questions about transparency as the state grapples with the intricacies of one of the largest energy booms in decades."

"You might say Texas has a running start in the race to slash carbon emissions in electricity generation, a pursuit spurred by last week's proposed Environmental Protection Agency regulations aimed at reducing greenhouse gases."

"ATHENS, TX -- Investigators spent all day Sunday sifting through the remains of an Athens Fertilizer Storage Facility that burned down Thursday. The fire broke out just before 6 o'clock Thursday night at the East Texas Ag Supply Storage building on Larkin Street. Fire officials said they always investigate this type of incident as suspicious. Investigators said they still don't know what caused the fire, but said they won't stop until they've found all of the answers."