USA - LOUISIANA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Jeffrey P Good and Susan M Tyler, Jones Walker LLP
up to include a significant number of bills to strengthen the governor’s power. Lastly, the Industrial Tax Exemption Program, a tax abatement programme, is being closely watched. Although its use was limited under the prior administration, the new governor has implemented a number of changes to loosen requirements and change the local approval process. Climate Change a Concern, but Resilience and Opportunity-Seeking are Ingrained Severe weather events are on the rise globally, however 2023 was a relatively calm storm sea - son. That said, for most of its recorded history, Loui - siana has been subject to extreme weather. Endurance and nimbleness are built into the culture of the region and, in recent years, a num - ber of coastal resilience initiatives have been put into motion to reduce the impact of hurri - canes and related flooding. Federal and state legislation – including the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which directs USD492 million to the NOAA National Coastal Resilience Fund, among other programmes – has focused on restoring or expanding natural infrastructure such as wetlands and barrier islands that can reduce the devastation caused by major storms. Further inland, projects such as the USD225 mil - lion Five Bayous Project and the USD343 million Diversion Flood Control Project are designed to limit storm-related flooding along major drainage canals and rivers in the Baton Rouge area. One of the most significant areas for potential growth and investment in Louisiana is carbon sequestration. The state is a natural fit for activi -
ties related to the capture and storage of CO2, for several reasons. • Louisiana is already home to a highly devel - oped oil, gas, and chemicals production, refining, and distribution infrastructure, much of which could be easily repurposed to redi - rect CO2 and related byproducts into short- and long-term storage. Carbon sequestration projects that relied on conversion of existing facilities would be significantly cheaper than acquiring land and building new operations. • From a geological perspective, much of the state is situated over geological formations known as salt domes and over subsurface porous spaces (or “pore spaces”), some of which are naturally occurring and others that are the result of previous petroleum and natural-gas extraction. Currently filled with saline water, these spaces could take advan - tage of emerging storage and sequestration technologies. • The Louisiana state and federal governments have a long history of working collaboratively to manage underground wells and to protect drinking water from extraction and injection activities. The US Environmental Protec - tion Agency (EPA) has granted the Louisiana Department of Natural Resources primary authority, or primacy, to administer Class I-V wells, and EPA recently approved the state’s application to manage Class VI wells, which are used for the injection and geological sequestration of CO2. • Louisiana’s existing legal framework (includ - ing the Louisiana Geologic Sequestration of Carbon Dioxide Act, the Louisiana Civil Code, the Louisiana Mineral Code, and other stat - utes) has established processes that enable parties to obtain pore-space, salt dome, and other ancillary rights relating to carbon sequestration.
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