In Texas, CAFOs Are Regulated by the TCEQ by Mario Villarino
Developed by Dr. Mario A. Villarino, County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources Hopkins County, Texas In Texas, concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) are regulated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Any CAFO with more than 300 animal units (more than 200 mature dairy cows) located in the dairy outreach program...
Nuisance Abatement Act, TCEQ Contract Approved by Commissioners Court; Update Given on NET Data
Hopkins County Commissioners Court during their regular session Monday renewed a Nuisance Abatement Act and a contract with Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Commissioners also heard an update from company officials regarding i3 Vertical’s acquisition of NET Data. Citizen Comments Dave Graves updates Hopkins County Commissioners Court about NET Data following the company’s acquisition by i3 Verticals. During the...
Dike Election Receives Interest at State Level
All eyes are on the rural area of Dike, Texas as an election to make Dike an incorporated municipality is set for Saturday, May 6th at the Dike Community Center. A recent solar plant project has disrupted the quiet life in Dike. Some residents’ in Dike have banded together to have their Class C Incorporation request put on the ballot to add an extra layer of protection for landowners in that area. Tyler based KLTV recently...
Blattner Battles State of Texas on Damages From Building Solar Plant
April 21, 2023 – An investigation by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) is ongoing in the Dike, Texas area in response to complaints from nearby landowners. TCEQ found during an investigation between February 22, 2023 and March 6, 2023 that the construction of the solar plant by Blattner Energy, LLC is in violation of the provisions laid out in TPDES General Permit No. TXR150000. Stormwater from the site...
Sulphur River Board Notifies Authorities of Damages from ENGIE Solar Plant in Dike
April 14, 2023 – The Sulphur River Basin Authority issued a resolution on March 28, 2023 as a result of their findings involving the ENGIE Solar Project in Dike, Texas operated by Hopkins Energy, LLC. The board found that the state’s natural resources within the Sulphur River basin were being impacted in a dramatically negative way. Notifications of the resolution including evidence of the damages was then sent to all...
NOTICE: City Of Sulphur Springs Surface Water Treatment Technique Violation
The City of Sulphur Springs Utilities Director James Jordan reports due to the weather event over the past week, a surface water treatment technique violation occurred Dec. 24, 2022, at the Water Treatment Plant. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) sets minimum water quality standards for public drinking water. One of these standards is a turbidity limit. Turbidity by itself has no health effects. However, turbidity...
Part Of Private Drive To Be Added To Precinct 3 Road Inventory; Road Complaint Made To Commissioners Court
The bulk of discussion during the Nov. 28, 2022 meeting of Hopkins County Commissioners Court revolved around Precinct 3. Proposed was the addition of part of a private drive to the county road inventory. A complaint was made by a resident about the continued bad condition of a county road, and the county fire marshal submitted for inclusion in the official record for the Nov. 28, 2022 meeting of Hopkins County Commissioners Court two...
What to do with Tires?
Spring is here, and ‘Spring Cleanup’ is coming soon. By ‘Spring Cleanup’ we mean the annual chance for residents of Hopkins County to take certain waste materials to locations in Hopkins County for disposal. Neither the City or County cleanup events will accept tires. So… what to do? Landfill KSST also contact the local Republic Landfill in Campbell, TX. They will not accept any tires under any...
Boil Water Notice For Shady Grove #2 WSC Rescinded March 18
On March 15, 2022, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality required the Shady Grove #2 public water system, TX1120020, to issue a Boil Water Notice as a safety precaution to inform customers, individuals, or employees that due to conditions which occurred recently in the public water system, the water from this public water system was required to be boiled prior to use for drinking water or human consumption purposes. The public...
Commissioners Agree To Undisclosed Settlement With Delek For Road Damages
Hopkins County Commissioners Court Monday morning, Dec. 27, 2021, agreed to an undisclosed settlement with Delek Logistics for county road damages caused by heavy trucks used during the removal of diesel fuel spilled from a 2019 pipeline rupture. A 6-inch pipeline reportedly had diesel flowing through it after a two-month maintenance program. The pipe ruptured, spilling diesel ran into the nearby waterway on Oct. 2, 2019. The pipeline...
