Southwest (AZ NM OK TX)

"New Mexico oil and gas regulators on Thursday adopted new rules to limit most venting and flaring in the oilfield as a way to reduce methane emissions."

"Texas is crisscrossed by thousands of miles of freeways, but a Houston-area county is suing the state to stop one of them being expanded, arguing the air pollution and displacement will primarily harm minority communities."

"In Houston’s poorest neighborhoods, an unfamiliar winter storm stoked a familiar anguish, one fueled by recurring floods and what residents see as a pattern of neglect."

"On any hot day in the Phoenix area, the heat builds up in some neighborhoods more than others."

"The last standing member of Texas’s Public Utility Commission handed in his resignation on Tuesday following a report that he assured out-of-state investors who made big profits from last month’s blackouts that he was working to make sure they could keep their money."

"A warming world means an invasive grass is threatening the famous saguaro
Cactuses cover a hillside in Saguaro National Park in Arizona."

"TUCSON — The giant saguaro, an icon of the American West, is beloved in this state. Arms raised in a perpetual “hello there,” the saguaro covers the desert wilderness and thrives in cities. Its silhouette appears in fine art and on restaurant walls; businesses and schools carry its name. Arizona state law protects the plant, and it is revered by the native Tohono O’odham tribe.

"Gov. Kevin Stitt’s commission to sort out Oklahoma’s future is stacked with oil and gas insiders — and has no Indigenous voices."

"The chairwoman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas, the agency that regulates the state’s electric, telecommunication, and water and sewer utilities, resigned Monday, according to a resignation letter provided to the Texas Tribune."