VIOLET, La., Jan. 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Officials released a new, expert report today that provides a negative view of the Port of New Orleans’ plans to develop a massive container terminal, known as Louisiana International Terminal (LIT), in St. Bernard Parish. The report urges a statewide approach that places such a terminal at “a superior, more favorable, and less publicly impactful terminal site further downriver.”
The previous parish government administration hired Vickerman & Associates, a leading firm specializing in the planning and design of port facilities worldwide, to examine the proposed project, and the report was finalized this week.
The report points to numerous alternative locations that are likely better suited for such a facility.
It states, “Not conducting a comprehensive site selection analysis would be a strategic mistake for the State of Louisiana, and indeed the nation, now more than ever.”
Locations for a mega container terminal have been examined for decades, and the expert findings say the best location is further downriver.
The report further calls attention to LIT’s “substantial and potentially deleterious public health, safety, environmental and traffic impacts on the citizens of St. Bernard Parish.”
This echoes the concerns of many thousands of locals who signed a petition organized by The Committee to Stop the Destruction of St. Bernard, the group behind the Save Our St. Bernard (“SOS”) campaign. Seventy-three percent of parish residents are against LIT according to a recent poll, and every new local elected official made a campaign pledge to oppose it.
The report outlines how the proposed location in St. Bernard Parish is unsafe. It illustrates how “82% of the navigational river traffic would be completely blocked during vessel departures,” and it cites simulations that show “maneuvers were not successful due to unsafe clearance issues.” An estimate ten years ago found that the cost of shutting down the river because of an incident was estimated at some $300 million per day.
The full report can be found at https://www.sostbernard.org/report
The Committee to Stop the Destruction of St. Bernard also has a consulting contract with Vickerman & Associates, which helped fund the expert report, and it is a lead plaintiff in a lawsuit to stop LIT. St. Bernard Parish government also filed a separate lawsuit to stop the Port of New Orleans from operating in the parish.
Media Contact:
Save Our St. Bernard
sos@sostbernard.org
