We once told you TCEQ is worthless as teats on a boar hog. We stand by that statement.

Yesterday, a decommissioned power plant went up in flames in Texas City, Texas. Don't worry, it's just smoke, says ABC News.

Today, LIV filed formal comments with the TCEQ (Texas Commission for Environmental Quality) on the natural gas-fired Bastrop Peakers Peakers LLC Plant.

We attended a public meeting on Monday, November 10, held by the TCEQ to let TCEQ and the owner/operator know the community’s concerns with enlarging the power plant already operating at the site.

We asked what the purpose of the additional power generation was. We asked was it for we development -- more residents -- or a data center. The permit applicants explained, "it's just going to the grid.”

What we asked for, in our comments, could have been asked for by local officials related to noise and light pollution.

A few officials were there, but they said nothing. See LIV Comments HERE.

We have to be honest with you. We had few resources and, as of October 21, little faith to muster a fight on this plant. That's because on October 21, the TCEQ bothered to throw nary a bone to the good people of Blue, Texas (Lee County), and their very astute and well-prepared attorneys representing the "Move the Gas Plant" group.

MTGP has been fighting to simply move the location of a brand new, 1.2 gigawatt natural gas plant to land nearby that has already been polluted by ALCOA's strip mining years ago to fire its lignite-powered power plant. It made total sense to remove it from the vicinity of at least a hundred properties, but apparently not enough dollars and cents for California and Wall Street investors who could give two hoots about land that Texans hold dear.  

It should not go unnoticed that Blue is in north Lee County, not far from the Lee County community impacted by Vista Ridge, the 142-mile water pipeline colloquially known as the "San Antone Hose". This community has had it with intrusive projects that prey upon their resources and way of life.

Yes, it's all a crying shame. We intend to make the questionable purposes of both these beefed-up and brand new plants a big issue in the 2026 election campaign. Then some other people will be crying, or so we hope!

See Move the Gas Plant's press release HERE.

Contact us if you are also similarly affected and want to do something about it.

Power plants, data centers and unwanted water projects abound. But so do we, the people who live here. TCEQ might be worthless, but we are not.