Natural Gas Power Plant in New Orleans East? Neighbors Say No

By Yessenia Funes Jul 13, 2016

New Orleans community and environmental groups are calling a proposal for remodeling an inactive natural gas plant in the primarily Black community of New Orleans East an "environmental injustice," reports WDSU.

In a community meeting last night (July 12), attendees criticized the $216 million proposal by Entergy, an energy company. Entergy is seeking approval from City Council but has failed to consult with New Orleans East residents. The remodeled plant there would be smaller than the original, but environmental advocates say it’s still a potential health risk to people living nearby.

Entergy submitted the proposal June 20 within its Integrated Resource Plan, which fails to mention renewable energy, according to an earlier report from NOLA.com. That worried local environmentalists like Beverly Wright, the executive director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice.

“If we’re moving in a direction where we’re building something that doesn’t include renewables, it’s not moving in the right direction,” he said to WDSU.

If the city council approves the plan, the new power plant is set to start running by the end of 2019.