Current:Home > FinanceFire marshal cancels hearing for ammonia plant amid overflowing crowd and surging public interest -Legacy Profit Partners
Fire marshal cancels hearing for ammonia plant amid overflowing crowd and surging public interest
View
Date:2025-04-19 15:20:14
ST. ROSE, La. (AP) — A fire marshal shut down a public hearing for a proposed ammonia production facility in Louisiana as public interest surged and crowds overflowed a public library in St. Charles Parish.
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality had scheduled the hearing to receive public comments on the proposed $4.6 billion St. Charles Clean Fuels ammonia production facility.
Many St. Rose residents who came to the hearing indicated they are worried about the prospect of more pollution. The town lies along a heavily industrialized stretch of the Mississippi river between New Orleans and Baton Rouge known as “ Cancer Alley ” for its high levels of chemical pollution.
St. Rose resident Kimbrelle Eugene Kyereh said she and other community activists passed out thousands of flyers to get their neighbors to attend the hearing and raise their concerns with St. Charles Clean Fuels.
“People had not heard about it so they were very, very opposed to an ammonia plant coming in addition to what we already have here,” Kyereh said.
More than 150 people tried to squeeze into a small public library room with a capacity to hold 50 according to a fire marshal who arrived to shut down the meeting. Many were forced to stand in the parking lot.
A Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality official told residents the meeting would be rescheduled and the public comment period extended.
St. Charles Clean Fuels CEO Ramesh Raman said at the start of the hearing that his company is interested to hear from the community.
St. Charles Clean Fuels would be capable of producing 8,000 metric tons daily of ammonia, commonly used for fertilizers. The company said it intends to reduce its pollution by employing technology to capture and store its carbon dioxide emissions.
The ammonia would be stored at an adjacent site owned by International Matex Tank Terminals, which reported releasing more than 100,000 pounds of toxic volatile organic compounds last year, according to state records. This is about twice the level needed to qualify as a major source of toxic air pollution in Louisiana, said Kimberly Terrell, director of community engagement with the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic.
Grassroots community activism in response to pollution concerns in Cancer Alley has halted multiple industrial projects in recent years.
“They taking us seriously now,” St. Rose resident Arthur Blue said. “They know they waking a sleeping giant.”
____________
Jack Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.
veryGood! (42642)
Related
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- The Hills' Whitney Port Addresses “Snarky” Comments Amid Concerns Over Her Weight
- Horoscopes Today, August 21, 2023
- Anime can invite you into worlds you didn't know before. It does for me
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Nevada assemblywoman announces congressional bid in swing district
- Russian space agency chief blames decades of inactivity for Luna-25 lander’s crash on the moon
- 3 killed, 6 wounded in mass shooting at hookah lounge in Seattle
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Inside KCON LA 2023, an extravagant microcosm of K-pop’s macro influence
Ranking
- California DMV apologizes for license plate that some say mocks Oct. 7 attack on Israel
- Weather service confirms fifth tornado among a spate of twisters to hit New England last week
- Facebook users have just days to file for their share of a $725 million settlement. Here's how.
- Viktor Hovland shoots career-low round to win 2023 BMW Championship
- McKinsey to pay $650 million after advising opioid maker on how to 'turbocharge' sales
- Alabama Barker Shares Struggle With Thyroid and Autoimmune Disease Amid Comments on Her Weight
- MLB power rankings: The National League wild-card race is living up to its name
- Feel Comfy and Look Professional in These Sweatpants That Look Like Work Pants
Recommendation
Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
Brown tarantula mating season is here! You may see more of the arachnids in these states.
10 damaged homes remain uninhabitable, a week after Pennsylvania explosion that killed 6
Alabama Barker Shares Struggle With Thyroid and Autoimmune Disease Amid Comments on Her Weight
Woman dies after Singapore family of 3 gets into accident in Taiwan
After school shooting, Tennessee lawmakers not expected to take up gun control in special session
As Tropical Storm Hilary shrinks, desert and mountain towns dig themselves out of the mud
Sarah Hyland confronted by 'Love Island' contestant for 'disrespectful' comment: Watch