The state of Texas's environment, in one place.
An independent, non-partisan guide to the land, water, air and energy of Texas — and the policy decisions shaping all of it. Plain-language summaries, county-level data, and the regional context behind the numbers.
Eight ways to read the Texas environment
Water Quantity
Supply, demand and the regional plans that ration a finite resource across a growing state.
Regional supply & demand →Water Quality
What reaches our rivers, lakes and bays — and the runoff, discharge and spills behind it.
Sources of pollution →Land
Ten ecological regions, working farms and ranches, public lands and the pressure of sprawl.
Ecological regions →Wildlife & Biodiversity
The habitats and species that define each region, and the lands holding them together.
Habitats by region →Air Quality
Ozone, particulates and the industrial and mobile sources putting them into the sky.
Major sources →Waste
What Texas throws away — municipal and industrial — and where the state's landfills are filling.
Municipal solid waste →Energy
The nation's energy engine — oil and gas alongside a wind and solar build-out without rival.
Renewable energy →Pesticides
How much, on what, and where — the agricultural and urban chemistry Texas applies each year.
Pesticide use →Ten ecological regions, one state
From the loblolly pines of the eastern timber belt to the desert mountains west of the Pecos, Texas is really a dozen landscapes wearing one name. Our regional profiles map the geology, climate, vegetation and land use that make each one distinct — and explain why a policy that fits the High Plains can fail on the Gulf Coast.
Find your county's environmental picture
Each of Texas's 254 counties sits within a larger ecological region that shapes its water, soils, air and wildlife. Choose a county to see which region it belongs to and jump straight to the relevant profile.
County-by-county indicator tables are being migrated from the original archive. Regional profiles are live now.
Why region, not just county lines
- Counties in Texas
- 254
- Ecological regions
- 10
- Major river basins
- 15
- Water planning regions
- 16 (A–P)
- Land in farms & ranches
- ~83%
Recently updated profiles
Texas's renewable potential, by the numbers
The state's accessible wind and solar resource could supply many times its own electricity demand. What's built, what's possible, and what stands between them.
Updated June 2026 · 9 min readWhat sustainable agriculture means in Texas
Soil, water and working lands under pressure — and the practices keeping farms and ranches viable as the state grows.
Updated May 2026 · 8 min readWhat's polluting Texas surface water
Point and nonpoint sources, from wastewater outfalls to the runoff that follows every storm across pavement and pasture.
Updated May 2026 · 7 min readA plain-language record of a complicated place
Texas Environmental Profiles is an independent, non-partisan resource. We pull together data from state and federal agencies, peer-reviewed science and public records, and translate it into summaries any Texan can read. We don't lobby and we don't sell anything — the goal is simply a clearer shared picture of the land we share.