Blog entries tagged environment

The Future of Montgomery County's Water Looks Bright

daphne — Wed, 26 May 2010 01:18:12 +0100

The Conroe Independent School District is joining an initiative that will address the future water needs of the entire Montgomery County area.

According to the county, the school district is one of the top 200 water consumers in Montgomery County and as a result of the school board vote on May 18, they will be joining a contract with the San Jacinto River Authority to meet a countywide mandate that will reduce the use of groundwater by up to 30 percent by the year 2016.

The plan will be paid for via pump fees, expected to add about $2 per 1,000 gallons used to all water bills in the Montgomery County by 2016.

The contract states that “its main purpose is to address the county’s dwindling water supply. And, the San Jacinto River Authority has proposed pumping water from Lake Conroe to the heavy populated areas in The Woodlands and Conroe, while allowing outlying rural areas to remain entirely on groundwater.”

“While some district are still exploring brackish water as a water supply solution, no one has refused to sign the San Jacinto contract,” said Jace Houston, deputy general manager of SJRA.

Texas Native Donny Edwards Performs A Tribute to Elvis at the Crighton in Conroe

Greg Rivera — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:57:32 +0100

He may look, talk and walk like Elvis, but this is none other than Texas native Donny Edwards, and Conroe residents can catch his live performance, ‘A tribute to Elvis’ at Crighton Theatre in Conroe on Saturday January 30 and Sunday January 31. This local theatre has been serving the community with performances for all ages and tastes and was recently recognized with the “Ultimate Venue-Outside the Loop” award by the Houston Chronicle for offering performances for all tastes in the arts.

Impersonating Elvis may be a niche, but it’s an unexpected one that has served Donny Edwards well. He is a Texas native who never planned on being an Elvis impersonator, but with a look and a voice so similar to Elvis’ the persona eventually took shape. “My look is very similar to Elvis’ and it’s naturaI. I vocally have a very similar tone and for the last few years, things have really skyrocketed for me,” Edwards said. “As a kid, I loved going into my room and singing Elvis songs, but l liked everyone else, too. I never cared for guys who did Elvis.”

Starting as a love for music and singing as a kid his talent became an unexpected career in 2002. After graduating he made his way to Vegas and when numerous people asked him where he performed paired with his father’s acknowledgement that he sounded pretty good doing an Elvis recording, Edwards decided there might be something to this and started entertaining the idea of becoming an Elvis impersonator. “In ’02, I joined in a contest and before I knew it, I won,” he shared. “I did another contest and I won that one. Then I got third at a big one in Wisconsin. I met quite a few people in the business there.” Soon Edwards was making his way to Vegas to begin work as The King and he hasn’t looked back since.

Edwards has now been performing for seven years, with a look, style and voice that landed him in third place on the 2007 ABC television show “The Next Best Thing.” “It was a cool experience. I still feel like I should have won,” Edwards laughed. “But it was very humbling to be around that many people who were good at the art of portraying someone. I’ve never been around that much talent. I had a great time down there.”

Now Edwards is back in Texas for area residents to enjoy as he shakes, rattles and rolls across the Crighton stage. What began as a one night show called “One Night with Elvis” became three shows as residents were eager to purchase tickets and the January 22 show sold old almost immediately.

Donny Edwards returns to the Crighton Theatre, along with American Idol finalist - Sundance Head, and Legendary Band – Fever, for more performances on January 30 and 31. Tickets start at just $25 and can be purchased online at www.crightontheatre.org or by calling 936-441-7469 ext 201. Saturday’s show starts at 7pm and Sunday’s at 3pm at the Crighton Theatre, at 234 Main St. in Conroe, TX.

Source: www.hcnonline.com

Less Energy Equals Money Saved

daphne — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 05:00:00 +0100

As part of President Obama’s American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, a $3.2 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy was issued to Montgomery County as a means for improving energy efficiency in county buildings. The grant is part of a larger block grant “available to cities, counties, territories and tribes across the nation to support energy audits and energy efficiency retrofits in residential and commercial buildings, develop and implement advanced building codes and inspections, and create financial incentive programs for energy efficiency improvements.”

Montgomery County has already proven itself in this regard by committing to the initiative of reducing energy consumption and water use by 5% since 2004, and has remodeled its buildings to use more energy conservative alternatives. The effort was worth it and the county won several awards and saved thousands of dollars in energy costs.

According to County Judge Alan B. Sadler, the county has saved $40,000 in electrical costs every year since the initiative was launched in the administration building alone, simply by replacing all of the ballasts and lights, reimbursing the costs for the project within 15 months.

The main outlet for the grant will be to replace air conditioning units and light fixtures in up to 15 county facilities. The old A/C units contain Freon, a material hazardous to the earth’s ozone layer, and energy consumption is expected to be reduced at least 20% for every building.

This is only a start for Montgomery County, as seen by its initiative launched five years ago. The federal grant will help to aid the county in its energy transformation in terms of funding, but it needs no other motivational push to meet its goals.

The residents of Graystone Hills can also help support the county by contributing to energy conservation and saving money. Visit the U.S. Department of Energy’s energy-saving tips page for all the information you can use to improve your neighborhood.

Source: Houston Chronicle