"Louisiana AG hired lawyers for EPA negotiations who were also representing chemical firm at center of inquiry, documents show".
"Facing a pivotal federal investigation into Louisiana’s relationship with petro-chemical companies, the state’s attorney general hired lawyers who were simultaneously representing one of the main corporations at the center of the investigation, documents reveal.
The revelations, contained in documents released under public records requests, have led to allegations of a major conflict of interest and come just weeks after the Environmental Protection Agency [EPA] dropped its civil rights investigation.
Internal emails, contracts and payments, show that the office of the attorney general, Jeff Landry, hired two lawyers to enter closed-door negotiations with the EPA during the 14-month civil rights investigation. But John King and Tim Hardy were also representing the Taiwanese chemicals firm Formosa in separate litigation, challenging a decision to revoke the company’s state air permits.
Formosa has proposed a gargantuan plastics facility in St James parish, at the center of “Cancer Alley”, the heavily polluted corridor between New Orleans and Baton Rouge, but has been paused by a series of recent court and permitting decisions.
In June, however, the EPA prematurely dropped its investigation, which included an investigation of 14 air permits issued for Formosa and the racially disproportionate impacts of air pollution in the region, without declaring any findings. The case was considered a groundbreaking development by activists who have long argued that the petrochemical industry’s expansion on Louisiana’s coast is not only harmful but also an act of racism."
Grey Moran and Sara Sneath report for the Guardian August 10, 2023.
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