Neena Satija Reporter

Neena Satija covers the environment for the Tribune. A native of the Washington, D.C. area, she graduated from Yale University in 2011, and then worked for a number of area news outlets, including the New Haven Independent, the Connecticut Mirror, and WNPR/Connecticut Public Radio. She has also been a regular contributor to National Public Radio. She previously worked for the Toledo Blade, the Dallas Morning News, and the Boston Globe. In her spare time, she enjoys singing (especially in group settings), running, and playing the addictive board game Settlers of Catan. As an East Coast transplant she is particularly thrilled with Austin tacos and warm weather.

Recent Contributions

Private Sector an Oasis for Thirsty San Antonio

A map of the proposed pipeline that will deliver 16 billion gallons of water annually from underneath Burleson County to San Antonio, about 140 miles away.
A map of the proposed pipeline that will deliver 16 billion gallons of water annually from underneath Burleson County to San Antonio, about 140 miles away.

Frustrated for decades in its search for a new source of water, San Antonio thinks it has finally divined the answer. It will pay a premium to let private companies do the work.

Water Project Funds Ready to Flow — Almost

Lake Travis, a major water supply reservoir for Austin, is severely depleted due to drought. The State Water Plan calls for dozens more such reservoir projects to be built in the coming decades to meet Texas' future water needs.
Lake Travis, a major water supply reservoir for Austin, is severely depleted due to drought. The State Water Plan calls for dozens more such reservoir projects to be built in the coming decades to meet Texas' future water needs.

Texas is ready to start handing out $2 billion in seed money for water projects, more than a year after voters approved a constitutional amendment tapping into excess oil and gas tax revenues. 

 

 

San Antonio Approves Historic Water Project

Lee County resident Hilde Sides protests the Vista Ridge Water Supply Project with other Lee and Bastrop County residents outside the San Antonio City Council public hearing on the project on Oct. 8.
Lee County resident Hilde Sides protests the Vista Ridge Water Supply Project with other Lee and Bastrop County residents outside the San Antonio City Council public hearing on the project on Oct. 8.

The San Antonio City Council on Thursday unanimously voted in front of a packed chamber to approve a controversial pipeline that would bring in groundwater from 142 miles away.

 

Vote Set on San Antonio's Historic Water Gamble

A map of the proposed pipeline that will deliver 16 billion gallons of water annually from underneath Burleson County to San Antonio, about 140 miles away.
A map of the proposed pipeline that will deliver 16 billion gallons of water annually from underneath Burleson County to San Antonio, about 140 miles away.

As San Antonio's City Council prepares to vote on a controversial water pipeline, new emails fuel concern that the project might not be necessary.

 

Texans Coming to Grips With Rising Water Costs

Paul Dowlearn poses for a portrait at Wichita Valley Nursery in Wichita Falls on Oct. 7. Dowlearn has been collecting rain water for years.
Paul Dowlearn poses for a portrait at Wichita Valley Nursery in Wichita Falls on Oct. 7. Dowlearn has been collecting rain water for years.

Water and sewer bills are going up substantially across Texas and in many other places around the country as utilities struggle to maintain aging infrastructure, deal with drought or come to grips with the rising costs of a scarce resource while searching for new supplies. 

Lawmakers to Examine Texas' Public Health Readiness

Texas Sen. Charles Schwertner, Dr. Brett Giroir and Gov. Rick Perry at the Ebola press conference at the Texas Capitol on Oct. 6, 2014.
Texas Sen. Charles Schwertner, Dr. Brett Giroir and Gov. Rick Perry at the Ebola press conference at the Texas Capitol on Oct. 6, 2014.

In the wake of what some have called a botched response to the first known case of Ebola in the United States, Texas lawmakers will meet Tuesday afternoon in Austin to examine the state's public health infrastructure.