The suit, brought by the Louisiana Bucket Brigade and Rural Roots Louisiana, alleges the permits for Clean Hydrogen Works’ new plant fail to account for cumulative pollution impacts and critical monitoring requirements in an already heavily industrialized area.
A significant legal challenge has been mounted against the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) following its approval of permits for a new ammonia production facility in Ascension Parish. The Louisiana Bucket Brigade and Rural Roots Louisiana have filed a petition and subsequent lawsuit seeking to overturn the air permits, claiming the LDEQ acted in violation of the state constitution and failed in its duty as a public trustee of the environment.
The facility in question is the proposed Ascension Clean Energy plant, a 1,700 square foot ammonia production site being developed by Clean Hydrogen Works at the Riverplex Mega Park in Modeste. The groups argue that the state agency’s approval opens the door to significant new pollution in a community already overburdened by industrial facilities.
According to the legal filing, the new plant is projected to release over 143 tons of ammonia per year. The petitioners stress that communities in Donaldsonville and Modeste are already surrounded by heavy industry. Attorney Adrian Alpay, representing the community groups, highlighted the severity of the existing environmental burden.
"Communities in Donaldsonville and Modeste already have so many of these facilities. So within 10 miles of Modeste in particular, there are 26 facilities, and altogether they are met with thousands of tons of ammonia per year," Alpay stated.
The lawsuit asserts that the LDEQ failed in its constitutional duties to ensure that adverse environmental impacts were minimized. It specifies several critical oversights in the permitting process. Among the claims are that the LDEQ disregarded the cumulative impacts of adding another major facility to the industrial corridor. Furthermore, the petition points out a fundamental lack of environmental safeguards in the approved permits.
"With respect to these permits, there is no continuous ammonia monitoring. There is no ozone ceasing monitoring," Alpay added. The groups are simply asking the state to "follow the constitution, follow the law, follow the environmental regulation, and make sure these permits are all inclusive of everything they are supposed to do under the law."
Another major point of contention in the petition is the LDEQ's failure to adequately discuss the implications of Carbon Capture Sequestration (CCS) Pipelines and Class IV wells within the air permitting analysis. Given the growing environmental scrutiny of CCS technology, the community groups claim this omission is a significant gap in the regulatory review.
The palpable frustration among residents was voiced by Rural Roots Louisiana Founder, Ashley Gaignard, who questioned the state's shifting regulatory approach toward the area. "Everybody wants to develop Modeste into the industrial mega park. I think all the rules are getting thrown out the window. You said this area was sensitive to industrial pollution, now it's not anymore?" Gaignard asked.
Clean Hydrogen Works, the developer behind the proposed plant, acknowledged the filing while expressing confidence in the state's regulatory process. A spokesperson for the company stated, "Clean Hydrogen Works cannot comment on the lawsuit at this time, as we have not completed a full review of the filing; however, we are confident in the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and their rigorous review of Ascension Clean Energy's air permit application. Ascension Clean Energy remains committed to the highest standards of community engagement and environmental protection."
The petition seeks to stop the developers from commencing construction, forcing a re-evaluation of the environmental consequences and cumulative health impacts on the local residents of Donaldsonville and Modeste.
