Royal Dutch Shell plc

New Cracks in the Frack

Pesky little complaints like pollution, flaming water and abandoned homes continue to cast doubt on the argument that drilling into shale will benefit all.

Father Figures: 100 Famous Musicians' Paternal Professions

If you're a Texan of a certain age, this week you've probably spent some time mourning the death of Jerry Haynes, the children's TV host better known as Mr. Peppermint. Haynes' show on WFAA-TV in Dallas, Peppermint Place, ran from the '60s to the '90s and was widely syndicated across the state, incl ... More >>

Last Night: Roger Waters' The Wall at the Toyota Center

Photos by Jim BrickerRoger Waters performed The Wall in its entirety Saturday night at Toyota Center. See our slideshow for more photos.​Roger Waters Toyota Center November 20, 2010 Ed. note: The sold-out Roger Waters show was so highly anticipated, we sent two reviewers. Tune in Monday morni ... More >>

WHAT?!? Companies Pay BRIBES To Do Business In Russia And Angola?

Shocking, we know​Be prepared to lose all faith in -- well, if not humanity, per se, at least capitalism and government officials in Nigeria.It appears -- are you sitting down? -- that bribery is sometimes used when American companies try to do business in Russia, Nigeria, Angola and Kazakhstan. Y ... More >>

Harris County Sues Chemical Plant Over Carcinogen Release

County attorney steps in where TCEQ won't​It's no secret that when it comes to penalizing industrial plants for violating their emissions permits and endangering public health, TCEQ (the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality) is not a very tough sheriff. The state regulatory agency rarely take ... More >>

More Bad Benzene Numbers, And They're Probably Worse Than They Sound

​Oil and gas make the world go 'round, but refining the stuff can be deadly business. And according to a new report, the cancer-causing chemical known as benzene is on the rise.Earlier today, the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Environmental Integrity Project released a study showing that benzene ... More >>

A Quiet Hell

Thanks to lax enforcement by TCEQ, plants along the Houston Ship Channel launch tons of toxic gases into our air, and face little penalty even when they exceed pollution limits over and over again.

Houston's Waterways Are Filled With All Kinds Of Stuff They Shouldn't Be Filled With, Group Says

​Stay the hell away from Houston's waterways. Don't swim in them and for heaven's sake don't eat the fish.That was essentially the message this morning at a news conference held alongside the Houston Ship Channel, hosted by Environment Texas, an environmental advocacy group, which complied data fr ... More >>

Houston Companies Don't Do Too Badly In Survey Of Gay-Friendly Workplaces

​The Human Rights Campaign Foundation has issued its latest rankings of how businesses treat their gay and lesbian employees, and things look a little better than last year.The report gave 305 businesses a top score of 100 this year; that's an increase from last year's 260. Eleven of the top 20 Fo ... More >>

Oldies, And Not Goodies, On The Pollution Front

The wheels of environmental justice move ever so slowly. To call it a snail's pace would be an insult to mollusks everywhere. But it is what is, as we say in the parlance of our times, so now we have the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality assessing penalties against two local polluters for ... More >>

Shell Oil Finally Gets Fined For What It Puts Into Deer Park's Air

It took awhile, but state environmental regulators and Shell Oil finally came to meeting of the minds about a slew of pollution violations committed at the Deer Park refinery. Upshot: Shell will pay a $345,744 penalty for 35 emissions events and record-keeping violations that occurred from 2004 ... More >>

High Gas Prices: Protests, Segways and Prostitutes

It’s Mathew Knowles’s Town. We Just Live Here.

Harris County Leads the Nation in Polluting Facilities. So We’ve Got That Going for Us.

Take a Hike: Would an Extra Dollar a Gallon Keep People Thin?

“Old Is New”

space125gallery is bringing the past back with style

Tunnel Mole on Speed

Woodwind Lakes: County Gofers

With a lot of prompting, HCAD files a lawsuit the neighbors never did

Shell Hell

Shell Hell

Dark Water

A reporter, a photographer and canoeist Tom Helm paddle from the Galleria to Galveston Bay by canoe and kayak, finding beauty, danger and urban debris in equal measure

Run Over by Metro

The city's bus company shows little inclination to pay up or change its ways, even after it smacks into people like its own employee Clarence Santee Jr.

Le Smoking

Yves Saint Laurent has been throwing shade since he was a wee thing

Divided Road Ahead

The Art Car Parade parts ways with the International Festival

Groupie Grooves

Little Feat can only hope to receive the same "welcome" they got here 31 years ago

You Gotta Have Heart

Stages scores with a tender West Texas transplant

Out of Africa

In a small office off the Southwest Freeway, an editor carries on his crusade against public corruption and press censorship in his native Nigeria and other African countries

Paying the Price

Major gas companies are driving away independent station operators, all in the name of greed

Smoke and Mirrors

As part of the Bush legacy, a special law can hide polluting industries

V&E Gets a Dressing-down

Big law firms begin to go casual, filing the suits away

Bay Area Ballet

The Dinosaur Hunters

A Bitter Pill

A Houston inventor says alcohol-free medicines aren't alcohol-free at all, and could harm you

A Family Affair

Roland Garcia has the political backing to be the U.S. Attorney for South Texas. He also has a brother imprisoned for murder and drug trafficking -- a fact he somehow forgot to tell his congressional sponsors. That may not be enough to disqualify him, but

Sherwood's Rules

Sherwood Cryer lost his redneck empire the same way he built it: in a tangle of lawyers, women and country music

Light and Darkness

Aaron Parazette matures, while Mark Rothko endures

Don't cry for me, Amarillo

How once-fearsome corporate raider T. Boone Pickens was beaten at his own game -- by a one-time protege

The Passionate Pilgrim

He owns a baseball team, he's spent millions to wipe out a devastating Third World disease, and now he's out to save pro football for Houston. But what does John Jay Moores really want?

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