Louisiana Court Upholds Permits For Petrochemical Complex In Cancer Alley

"Decision helps clear path for Formosa Plastics to build US’s largest petrochemical complex of its time".

"A Louisiana appellate court has upheld air permits for a giant proposed petrochemical complex in a region known as Cancer Alley, enraging local advocates.

The decision, issued on Friday, will help clear a path for Formosa Plastics to build the nation’s largest petrochemical complex of its kind. The project has long faced staunch opposition from local and national environmental justice groups.

“Once again the state of Louisiana is putting polluters before people,” Sharon Lavigne, founder of the grassroots organization Rise St James, which works in the region, said in an emailed statement.

Friday’s ruling overturns a 2022 decision that vacated air permits for the $9.4bn project.

Those air permits, which the new decision affirmed, will authorize the plant to spew out more than 800 tons of air pollution each year – including carcinogenic ethylene oxide, as well as fine particulate matter and nitrogen dioxide, which have been linked to respiratory and cardiac illnesses."

Dharna Noor reports for the Guardian January 22, 2024.

Source: Guardian, 01/23/2024