Environment
Tree ordinances continue to take root in Austin
Since 2020, Austin’s tree regulations and protections have preserved a total of 1,397,678 inches of trees within city limits. Thus far in Fiscal Year 2025, 4,670 inches of trees have been surveyed and 4,250 inches have been preserved, with 91…
Environment • By Hunter Simmons • Nov 14, 2024
Updated: Austin Energy still considering options to answer to grid growing pains
As its end-of-year deadline approaches, Austin Energy is busy crunching numbers, hoping to finally nail down a much-anticipated update to its Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan. Update: Following publication of this story, Austin Energy reached out to the Monitor to let…
Energy • By Kali Bramble • Nov 7, 2024
Council slated to approve updates to Water Forward Plan and to Austin Water’s Conservation and Drought Contingency plans
This month, City Council will vote on proposed updates to Austin’s Water Forward Plan and to the related Water Conservation and Drought Contingency plans. During a briefing on Oct. 22, Austin Water Director Shay Ralls Roalson presented an overview of…
Water • By Mina Shekarchi • Nov 5, 2024
Parks and Recreation Board recommends audit of contracts governing city sports fields
The Austin Parks and Recreation Board unanimously voted to recommend that City Council conduct a comprehensive audit of all contracts related to dozens of city-owned baseball and soccer fields. The Austin Parks and Recreation Department frequently contracts with outside organizations…
Parks • By Madeline de Figueiredo • Oct 31, 2024
City shares update on parks-nonprofit relationships
During a special called meeting of City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee on Oct. 9, three speakers stated their concerns about the relationship between the Parks Department and its nonprofit partners, specifically regarding special events and the Trail of Lights.…
Parks • By Mina Shekarchi • Oct 29, 2024
EPA's Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials Program funds research at UT-Austin
The Joint Sustainability Committee heard a presentation on the Environmental Protection Agency’s Low Embodied Carbon Construction Materials Program at its most recent meeting on Oct. 23. The briefing was an opportunity for committee members to learn about the program, which…
Environment • By Hunter Simmons • Oct 29, 2024
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Benefits of urban trees justify projected price tag for city’s tree inventory plan
Funding to conduct an inventory of Austin’s public trees did not make it into this year’s budget as a City Council-approved resolution called for, but city officials say cost recommendations should be ready for the next budget cycle. An Oct.…
Environment • By Amy Smith • Oct 18, 2024
Commission brands glue traps ‘ineffective and gruesome,’ votes to recommend a ban
The Austin Animal Advisory Commission unanimously voted Monday to recommend that the city of Austin ban the purchase and use of glue traps in all city-owned and city-managed facilities. The commission’s recommendation was rooted in concerns about the inhumane and…
Environment • By Madeline de Figueiredo • Oct 16, 2024
Council nearly doubles payment to build water system for disannexed project
City Council has agreed to more than double its contribution toward a water infrastructure project that will service a project that recently disannexed from the western city limits. The unanimous approval of an amendment to the cost participation agreement between…
Water • By Chad Swiatecki • Oct 14, 2024
Austin is way ahead of the curve on federal effort to replace lead pipes
On the same day the Biden administration set a 10-year deadline for U.S. cities to remove all lead pipes, Austin announced that the city is officially 100 percent free of lead contamination in its public water system. “I am proud of…
Water • By Lina Fisher • Oct 11, 2024
City-owned land will be repurposed to add 5 new parks in Austin
Five new parks are joining Austin’s parks system, adding much needed green spaces to areas considered to be “park deficient.” Austin’s Watershed Protection Department has over the years acquired land for things like protecting the environment and managing floodwater. These…
Parks • By Luz Moreno-Lozano, KUT • Oct 11, 2024
Audit finds unpaid fees, lax rental practices at six PARD rec centers
The Office of the City Auditor has found widespread issues within the Austin Parks and Recreation Department related to inconsistent fee charges and collections for facility rentals at some community recreation centers. An audit report released Tuesday revealed that from…
