Governor Jeff Landry announces the state is very close to settling lawsuits against ConocoPhillips that alleged the energy company is responsible for damaging the state’s coastal marshes leading to land loss. There are 42 such lawsuits pending and ConocoPhillips is named in 13 of them. Landry says coastal litigation has held up progress that the coast desperately needs.
“It will put people to work. It will allow us to accelerate projects that our coastal communities have been waiting for, for far too long,” Landry said.
Landry says the settlement calls for ConocoPhillips to give the state access to 150,000 acres of land it owns and unlock hundreds of millions of dollars in coastal investment.
“It means access to these lands, clears the way for major restoration efforts and helps secure nearly $480 million of federal funding,” Landry explained.
It is not clear where the federal funding would come from. The governor says Conoco will pay into the state’s coastal trust fund and Landry says the settlement will allow for the state to move forward with a 94-mile coastal land project across Plaquemines and Terrebonne Parishes, which would protect the Houma-Thibodaux area.
“I want to let the people of South Louisiana know these are the deals that actually protect our coasts. They’re not just words, they’re actually action,” Landry said.
The ConocoPhillips settlement follows others that involve Freeport-McMoRan, BP, Shell and Hilcorp. Chevron and Exxon have yet to settle the coastal lawsuits against them.
Comments