The lawsuit filed in federal court in
A caller to
"The permit application met all of the legal requirements imposed by both the federal government and the state government," Edwards said.
The
“The Army Corps is fast-tracking the permits for
The lawsuit said members of that and other groups worry that destroying wetlands will hurt wildlife and leave neighborhoods more vulnerable to flooding, that toxic emissions will hurt their health and the environment, and that increased truck and barge traffic will increase noise, pollution and danger.
The
In addition to Healthy Gulf, plaintiffs are the
Rather than preparing a full environmental impact statement, the lawsuit said, the Corps put together “a deeply flawed and inadequate" assessment which failed to meet requirements to take a “hard look” at the plant's direct, indirect, and cumulative impacts.
The lawsuit said plant construction would destroy and degrade wetlands where rare animals live and which protect water quality, avert erosion and buffer local communities from the worst effects of flooding. Nearly 62 acres (25 hectares) acres of wetlands would be affected,
The plant “is expected to emit and discharge a variety of pollutants, including carcinogens and endocrine disrupters, into the air and water; discharge plastic into the
The permits would allow 800 tons (725 metric tonnes) of hazardous air pollutants a year, but Formosa has asked to double that.
The lawsuit mentions that
Studies in 1999 and 2005 reported that Louisiana Tumor Registry data did not show any difference in cancer rates between that area and the rest of
Edwards said the state plans to study whether the registry is accurate.
“I believe we can balance economic development, job creation and investment on the one hand with the health that we want for our citizenry on the other, and that’s exactly what we’re trying to do,” he said.
The lawsuit also accuses the Corps of failing to pay enough attention to history. Its permit approval came before information about likely slave cemeteries on the property was revealed, and one of those likely cemeteries is on wetlands that the plant would permanently damage, according to the lawsuit. Although the Corps said another cemetery was in an area dug out by a previous owner, information recently released by the state indicates that the dug-out area wasn't the actual location, the lawsuit stated.
The state and parish have offered the
Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed., source