The Louisiana Bucket Brigade and Habitat Recovery Project submitted a 60-day notice of intent to sue Venture Global for continued violations of the Clean Air Act at its Calcasieu Pass (CP) liquified natural gas (LNG) export facility. The organizations seek to hold Venture Global accountable for repeated exceedances of air permit limits, ongoing failures to meet reporting requirements, and recurring flaring violations.

“From the moment this company arrived in Louisiana, it has destroyed our environment, threatened the fishermen, and sown distrust,” said Anne Rolfes, director of the Louisiana Bucket Brigade. “It’s long past time to hold Vulture Global to account. Locals’ health and livelihoods should not be sacrificed and extinguished while Vulture Global is let off the hook for near-constant violations.”

Since January of 2022, Venture Global Calcasieu Pass (CP1) itself reported over 4500 hours of operations that violated its permits and the law. During those 4500 hours, Venture Global unlawfully released at least 20,000 pounds of harmful air pollutants like VOx, CO, VOCs, and Particulate Matter. CP1 also had over 500 unreported flaring incidents since 2022.

Venture Global has also failed to submit timely written reports of its unauthorized discharges to LDEQ’s Office of Environmental Compliance, Emergency and Radiological Services Division.

Frequent operational issues and permitting violations have been overlooked since the facility opened in 2022, allowing Venture Global to evade health and safety protections and continue harming surrounding communities. At the same time that the company fails to report existing issues via official channels, Venture Global has vigorously lobbied to expand its Louisiana operations and repeatedly sought increased permit limits without communicating potential risks to residents.

“The community surrounding Venture Global is home to a key biological area and a historic fishing culture. These residents are witnessing devastating harm, and without watchdog organizations, they would be left in the dark about the company’s violations and reckless mismanagement. Now that our 150+ members who are multigenerational families living and working in Cameron Parish know, they refuse to stand by while Venture Global continues to flout permits and regulations with impunity,” said Alyssa Portaro, director of Habitat Recovery Project. “The company’s permit violations and the lack of comprehensive environmental assessments in such a critical and delicate habitat demand urgent scrutiny. Testimonies from local fishermen and residents paint a harrowing picture: severe health impacts, ecological destruction, and the erosion of cultural and economic traditions that have existed for generations. This suffering cannot be ignored or allowed to continue.”

The organizations plan to bring the suit to address Venture Global’s ongoing lack of compliance and to address the absence of meaningful state or federal oversight. To fill the void of regulatory agencies and push back against overwhelming industry influence, directly-impacted local residents have stepped in to do so by providing data, monitoring reports, and firsthand accounts of the ongoing harms and impacts of LNG facilities like CP.

ABOUT LOUISIANA BUCKET BRIGADE

The Louisiana Bucket Brigade collaborates with communities on the fenceline of polluting industry in Louisiana. We engage in grassroots action to hasten the transition from fossil fuels.

ABOUT HABITAT RECOVERY PROJECT

Habitat Recovery Project is a community-focused conservation movement dedicated to restoring, generating, and preserving ecological habitats in existing and proposed contaminated communities, through supporting and benefiting the people and emerging grassroots initiatives that reside within them.

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