5. The DFW Green Arts Scene

Whether it was the environmental music of Denton band “Vocal Trash” or the countless examples of intricate and gorgeous crafts, this was a big year for highlighting the tremendous growth in environmentally friendly artistic efforts around DFW. Green fashion, green jewelry, mosaics, recycle art, and nature photography. All over DFW, artists are bringing green to the forefront not just of governmental policy considerations, but of our imaginations. And, as highlighted by Dr. Jason Simus in a lecture at the Botanical Research Institute, this art has had and will continue to play a key role in promoting ecological awareness in our community. 

4. DFW’s Dirty Air

Clean air was an issue not just in DFW but in Texas more broadly. DFW had its worst ozone levels since 2006. Considering its impacts on public health and livability, the state of the air out there was big news. 

3. The DFW Green Economy

All over DFW, green businesses were a bright spot in the DFW economy. Green Source highlighted the growth in green retail businesses in Ft. Worth. Groups like the DFW greenweavers have taken advantage of this growth to mobilize a community with vast potential to improve the employment picture in a still-slow North Texas economy. And while Christmas may be behind us, the wealth of green products highlighted in our holiday green gift guide and our green business directory are evidence of the increasing number of options available to DFW consumers who want sustainable products and services.

2. Fracking

Before 2011, the percentage of folks in the DFW metroplex who knew the meaning of the term “fracking” was doubtless significantly smaller than it will be in 2012. Short for hydraulic fracturing, a process common in modern gas drilling, the term has come to symbolize a broader debate underlying our energy economy. Summed up, what is the cost of unlocking reserves of natural gas from deep within the Earth beneath our communities? Ft. Worth has been grappling with these issues for years with regards to the Barnett Shale and Dallas earlier this year established a gas drilling task force to examine the cost of gas drilling for local communities, considerations which also include the impact on local water supplies imperiled by drought.

1. Devastating Drought

The high temperatures are gone, but their affects, on DFW and Texas, will linger for years. We won’t know until spring how many thousands or millions of trees may have died. Wildfires destroyed hundreds of acres around the state, and the Texas cattle industry is in danger of collapse. The record high temperatures may have moved on but we think the devastating drought will forever be the biggest environmental story of 2011.