Ryan Guerra drags an oyster dredge along a lease 40 miles east of the Bonnet Carre Spillway in St. Bernard Parish. He finds the vast majority of his oysters are dead. The few that’s alive right now, they’re dying in the shell," said the 43-year-old Guerra, who has been fishing these waters for a quarter of a century. “Usually, you [...]
Debate Continues on Lousiana House Bill 615
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - In April, Cornerstone Chemical Company on the West Bank reported a spill of 3,600 gallons of sulfuric acid. The spill left one employee injured, and the company worked to neutralize the spill. However, environmentalists fear House Bill 615 would allow companies to handle incidents like these outside the public eye. Attorney Joel Waltzer said this is [...]
Oil sludge recycling facility Thermaldyne opens near Port Allen despite court challenges
The Thermaldyne industrial recycling facility near Port Allen has opened for business despite several ongoing legal challenges. The company began advertising job openings in The Advocate over the weekend and told the paper it began operations last week and will start processing sludge in the coming week. Environmentalists and another recycling company have filed for a court stay and temporary [...]
Colonial Landfill operators agree to more testing for gas emissions, odors in suit settlement
[caption id="attachment_1757" align="alignnone" width="300"] Source: Lousiana Department of Environmental Quality[/caption] The operators of the Colonial Landfill near Sorrento have agreed to increased air monitoring for two years under a settlement ending litigation over a permit allowing expanded dumping at the decades-old waste pile. BFI Waste Systems of Louisiana, a subsidiary of Republic Services, has agreed to hire a third-party company [...]
Judge: Louisiana officials must look anew at Port Allen industrial recycling plant application
A judge has paused — at least for the time being — construction of an industrial recycling facility in Port Allen where residents have raised concerns about toxic chemicals. The company Thermaldyne provided a "deficiency" of information when it applied for a permit with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality last year, 19th Judicial District Judge William Morvant recently ruled. He [...]
Public Input Matters
On August 16, 2018, the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDW&F) quietly approved and executed an agreement with the Grand Isle Levee District to construct, operate and manage a new airport located on a narrow strip of land near Grande Isle. The airport plan, to be constructed on the Elmer’s Island property owned by the LDW&F, included redevelopment of [...]