FG LA LLC (FG)has received the permits needed to begin the construction phase of The Sunshine Projectand activities at the site are underway for theestimated $9.4 billion industrial complex to be located on the west bank in St. James Parish, Louisiana. Kimberly Terrell, a staff scientist at Tulane Universitys Environmental Law Clinic, calculates Formosas plant would emit 95 tons of cancer-causing chemicals a year, including hexane, carbon monoxide and benzene. construction until the pandemic has subsided Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? This is not unlike how Formosa Plastics has behaved when legal rulings were made in its development projects in Taiwan or elsewhere, often seeking interpretations of the law that would allow it to keep operating or to continue construction. Formosa opponents, including at least one parish council member, have criticized the report, saying it didn't do its own analysis of emissions data and didn't address some questions about how it had been reviewed. Access to expert insights on the latest industry developments and tracking market changes are vital in making sustainable business decisions.Want to learn about how we can work together to bring you actionable insight and support your business decisions? Dont get me wrong, Lavigne said. The smell when you go by certain industries, you get dizzy, nauseous and your nose starts burning, she said. She has also conducted research on blue hydrogen, petrochemical projects, gas flaring and fossil fuel extraction on public lands. A high proportion of people studied suffered cardiac symptoms, difficulty breathing, headaches, eye irritation, respiratory symptoms, skin irritation and fatigue, the study said. NEW YORK (ICIS)-FG LA LLC, a member of the Formosa Plastics Group, has deferred major construction at its Sunshine petrochemicals project in Louisiana, a spokesperson said on Monday. The US government has placed further delays on a proposed multibillion dollar plastics plant in south Louisiana, marking a major victory for environmental activists and members of the majority Black community who have campaigned for years against construction. The EPA investigation comes after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said last year it would put the Formosa project through an additional review over concerns, "particularly those with environmental justice implications.". Still, Gov. In 2019, Formosa paid $50 million to settle a case with the San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeeper after billions of the pellets were found in a local bay and creek near its South Texas plant. Opponents relentlessly try to misrepresent facts and blame the company for just about anything.. After Tsuang was sued for defamation by Formosa Plastics, over 1,000 academics worldwide would rally in defense, with a petition. Despite assertions made by outside groups about ancestral ties to the site, no archaeologist has been able to confirm the identity, ethnicity or race of the remains discovered on [Formosa] property, Parks said in her email. ", "This is the first time a government official has taken the time to see our humanity," Lavigne said. FG LA LLCsproposedchemical Formosa has over 100,000 employees worldwide with locations in the USA, Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Philippines and Indonesia. FG LALLC (FG)isa memberof Formosa Plastics Group(Formosa), a Taiwanese-basedconglomeratefounded in 1954. In addition, the real growth in chemical plants took place over the past decade, meaning many ill effects may not have had time to develop. It says there is simply no scientific proof of inflated cancer rates in the area. Hexane is something folks might work on in laboratories, but they would wear goggles, gloves, personal protection equipment, she said on a Facebook video posted by the Louisiana Bucket Brigade. You have permission to edit this article. Thompson/AP/Shutterstock. Click here to use our commodity finder. It turns out that Formosa would be allowed to release 138 bottles of this every day.. The label on a bottle of hexane warns the chemical may be fatal if swallowed and enters airways and may cause damage to organs through prolonged or repeated exposure. The final line: Avoid release to the environment., I wondered, how does this bottle compare to the volume of hexane that Formosa would release into the environment? Terrell said. For more than 100 years, Fluor has provided engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services that are the essential building blocks of development and progress. The Formosa Sunshine Project in St. James Parish, Louisiana, will undergo a full formal environmental review, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced in a memorandum issued today and posted on Twitter.. Locals fear that if Formosa's Sunshine Project, equivalent in size to 80 football fields, goes ahead, the petrochemical facility could potentially triple their exposure to cancer-causing . She has analyzed the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissions policies related to interstate pipeline approval. Dubbed the "Sunshine Project" and located just downriver of the Sunshine Bridge, the plant would make pellets and other raw materials that are used to make everyday plastic products. But we got them on the ropes. Then the local landmarks began to disappear. FG is listening to the community and is committed to supporting initiatives that meet local needs in St. James Parish. A LOUISIANA JUDGE struck down air permits for Taiwan-owned Formosa Plastics' 9 billion USD "Sunshine Project" earlier this month. A 2009 report released by Texas A&M indicated genetic damage in cattle as far as six miles away from Formosas chemical plant in Point Comfort. View projects by client market: Energy Solutions Urban Solutions Mission Solutions Energy Solutions LNG Canada Export Facility Kitimat, British Columbia, Canada The term Cancer Alley refers to a 85-mile stretch of the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge with over 150 fossil fuel and petrochemical facilities. The company has not confirmed the larger amount but has acknowledged rising construction costs. Martin Mayer, the Corps of Engineers' regulatory chief in New Orleans, said the EIS process has "an average goal" of rendering a decision in two years. How Taipei Became the Home of Live Comedy During the Pandemic, Never Mind Chinas Drills, Quincy Institute Article Views America as Sole Agent of Rising Tensions. Pellentesque ornare sem lacinia quam venenatis vestibulum. Although environmental activists who have been protesting the Sunshine Project for years have hailed this as a victory, Formosa Plastics has stated that it is exploring options to continue the project. They also argue it would create a massive new source of greenhouse gases at a time when much of the world is trying to fight climate change. Washington is putting another environmental justice hurdle in front of a proposed Formosa Plastics resin complex in Louisiana, saying it will investigate whether air pollution from the facility. It has also drawn attention from out-of-state political leaders and the United Nations. A New York native and Taiwanese-American, he has an MA in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University and graduated from New York University with majors in History, East Asian Studies, and English Literature. The issue of toxic air pollution also became a critical topic during a recent congressional election to replace the regions former US congressman Cedric Richmond, who joined the Biden administration. Currently Civil/Structural/Architectural/HVAC Director for NuScale Power Standard Plant Design Project Nuclear Modular Reactor Project Previously Civil/Structural Engineering Director for. Regulatory hurdles also continue to plague the project. On April 8, in a symbolic gesture, the New Orleans City Council voted unanimously to declare its opposition. tonne/year HDPE plant, a 400,000 tonne/year It is to be seen how Formosa attempts to resist the ruling against the Sunshine Project. Critics have claimed that Formosa's toxic emissions would land on already overburdened Black communities, like Welcome and Romeville, in the Mississippi River corridor. The president recently highlighted Cancer Alley as a real problem, and this is an opportunity to do something about it.. Augustaanlage 67 68165 Mannheim Germany. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers had already approved permits for the Sunshine Project, a $9.4 billion plastics plant that Formosa has been trying to build for three years, but it rescinded. Epidemiological studies in the region consistently sound alarms. But the companys prospects here are suddenly far from certain. Formosa would benefit from cheap gas and an already highly developed infrastructure, including rail and electric transmission lines, pipelines and ports. House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ral M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Rep. A. Donald McEachin (D-Va.) are urging the president to permanently revoke the Army Corps permit. Brian Hioe is one of the founding editors of New Bloom. Inherent, in the courts opinion, in a robust environmental justice analysis is the recognition that environmental racism exists, and that environmental racism operates through the states institutions, she wrote. We are listening to local concerns and developing programs that meet real community needs. We hope this visit inspires others to do the same. Market fundamentals suggest that the oversupply will push prices down, which makes going forward with the project unlikely.. In addition, IEEFA found the market for Formosa products is oversupplied. The next month, more than 300 people packed into a hearing at the parish council chambers. Formosa Petrochemical has been trying to build the $9.4 billion petrochemical complex on more than 2,000 acres of land along the Mississippi River for years. Abhishek Sinhais a petrochemicals analyst, US. Like Formosa, FG has a deep commitment to social, environmental and safety performance and will keep the community updated and informed as The Sunshine Project moves forward. The Sunshine Project has received the permits needed to begin the construction phase and activities at the site are underway. NEW YORK (ICIS)FG LA LLC, a member of the Further analysis and a public comment period must take place. Sharon Lavigne, who lives only two miles from the site, remembers the day her daughter called with the news about Formosa. Its possible health consequences scared her. That rope will break, trust me. As a result, Formosa has been charged with illegal pollution in Delaware, Louisiana, and Texas, leading the EPA to issue a $13 million fine to Formosa Plastics for environmental damage in Point Comfort, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 2009. page. Tom Sanzillois Director of Financial Analysis for IEEFA. Among our other endeavors, we currently run a community space in Wanhua, Taipei. Even the dead have played a role in the dispute. 1155 Gratiot Avenue ", Do you have an opinion about this story? The cleaners and post office shut their doors for lack of business. including the challenge it creates in Now the Corps of Engineers is conducting a more thorough review called an "environmental impact statement." progressing with plannedactivities at the Dufresne took office in January 2020, well into the fight over Formosa and after an earlier Parish Council majority had granted the project its blessing. In a short memo, Jaime Pinkham, the acting assistant secretary for the Army for civil works, offered little detail on the parameters of the new review, but said it would thoroughly review areas of concern, particularly those with environmental justice implications. The plant will make the plastic building blocks found in everyday products that help make our lives safer, healthier, cleaner and more efficient, Janile Parks, Formosa director of community and government relations, said in an email. In 2016, a steel plant owned by a Formosa subsidiary caused millions of dead fish washing up on the shorelines of four Vietnamese provinces, consisting of some 200 kilometers of shoreline. include a 207 million USD plant in Texas that was announced in May of this year. Activities will continue throughout the second The bulk of EPA's letters detailed its response to a petition from the environmental groups about a Denka Performance Elastomer LLC plant in nearby St. John the Baptist Parish, but the agency also said it would look at the Formosa complex because the groups raised similar concerns about it under Title VI of the Civil Rights of 1964. The Environmental Protection Agency said it has accepted a complaint from environmental and community groups opposed to the $9.4 billion Formosa facility and will examine whether Louisiana government officials violated civil rights laws in their decision-making. He was Democracy and Human Rights Service Fellow at the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy from 2017 to 2018. Formosa Plastics longer history of illegal dumping is also evidenced in its dumping of 3,000 tons of mercury waste in Sihanoukville, Cambodia in 1999 through bribery of government officials, an action which led to the deaths of three villagers. Connecting markets and data, enabling customers to make smarter business decisions. He identifies research topics for exploration and examines issues relevant to IEEFAs mission. "The company still has not received official notification from the Corps regarding the additional review or its components, nor did Acting Assistant Secretary Jaime Pinkham seek to meet with FG (last) week during his visit to the area, so we cannot comment further," Parks wrote. He said the new consultant's report gives him a solid basis to back the project and its benefits for his parish in full. wideningHighway 3127 expansion, utility Before long Lavigne left her job teaching students with special needs and founded RISE St. James, a grass-roots, faith-based organization devoted to opposing the plant. Dive Brief: Taiwan-based Formosa Petrochemical Corp. announced it will build a $9.4 billion manufacturing facility midway between New Orleans and Baton Rouge on a 2,400-acre site in St. James . It would be located a mile from the local elementary school and two miles downriver from the Sunshine Bridge, part of an 85-mile expanse from Baton Rouge to New Orleans thats dubbed Cancer Alley. 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