About 40 St. Bernard (La.) Parish residents opposed to the Port of New Orleans' proposal to build a $1.8B container terminal at Violet stepped up their protest Jan. 18 even though their leaders admit they face an uphill fight to block the project.
"We don’t deny this is a David and Goliath battle," lawyer Sidney Torres III, who has been leading the opposition's efforts through the courts, told NOLA.com.
Widely opposed in the parish, the project has broad state-wide support.
The plan calls for a container ship terminal that backers say is well overdue to compete with rival Gulf South ports.
Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, the first state government official not from the parish back the opposition, spoke in support of the protestors.
St. Bernard Parish Council commissioned veteran port planning consultant John Vickerman for a report, which argues that the Violet, 83 miles upriver from the mouth of the Mississippi River, would have safety issues for large container vessels. He concluded that a terminal closer to the mouth of the river would be a better option for Louisiana.
Port NOLA dismissed Vickerman's report as "illegitimate," specifically rejecting his criticism that alternative sites were not properly studied. (NOLA.com 01/19/24) St. Bernard residents step up effort to block port terminal | Business News | nola.com
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