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Local environmental activists to speak with officials in D.C. about Louisiana’s air pollution

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Local environmental activists to speak with officials in D.C. about Louisiana’s air pollution


WASHINGTON D.C – Founders of Inclusive Louisiana Barbara Washington and Gail Leboeuf and co-founder of The Descendants Project Joy Banner are currently in Washington D.C. to address concerns about Louisiana’s air pollution. They will speak with members of the State Department and other government officials. 

Barbara Washington and Gail Leboeuf say they only have about one minute to share their concerns. They will mainly focus on proposing adding buffer zones and 24-hour monitors to highly polluted areas.

“If we have 24-hour monitoring systems in place we can know in real time what is in the air and what is causing us to be as sick as we are,” Washington said. 

Joy Banner will be speaking to members of the state department about bringing awareness to how much chemical plants are affecting historically black communities. 

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“I will specifically tell them at the White House that our Port of South Louisiana is actively targeting us,” she said.

Last month, Judge David Cain in Lake Charles ruled that the EPA could not use the Civil Rights Act to fight environmental justice, in which the activists say is bogus.

“The air goes everywhere, but the discrimination is that it is in predominantly low-income, black and indigenous neighborhoods,” Leboeuf said. 

“Title Six is a law that if there are disparate impacts, then you have to fix it. Whether it’s intentional discrimination or not an impact is an impact,” Banner said.

Toronto-based Woodland Biofuels’ proposed a $1.35 billion plan in to the Port of South Louisiana, which could establish one of the largest renewable biofuel production facilities in the world. However, the environmental activists are not in favor of any new industrial plant being added or expanded.

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“There’s no acknowledgment that we are there as an existent community. That we’ve been there for generations. It’s like we’re just placeholders until a better industry comes along,” Banner said. 

Inclusive Louisiana has a hearing Oct 7. against St. James Parish. They plan to refile a moratorium against all new sites and expansion of industrial facilities.



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Louisiana

Louisiana Aging Network Association hosts annual conference in Lake Charles

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Louisiana Aging Network Association hosts annual conference in Lake Charles


LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) – Several workers with local Councils on Aging and insurance agencies were at day one of the Louisiana Aging Network Association Conference in Lake Charles today.

Debi Fleming, President of the Louisiana Aging Network Association, said during these conferences they hold training sessions for people who serve the elderly.

“This year I think pretty much all of us are having trouble with employees,” Fleming said. “We can’t seem to find drivers for our transportation service so that’s one of the sessions we’ll be talking about.”

Fleming said in the past, they have trained on things like what to do in the event of an active shooter to protect senior citizens and staff.

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“We do some employee kind of training, how to motivate employees and how to keep them. We can’t pay them what they’re worth, there’s not enough money in the world to pay them what they’re worth but we try to find ways other ways to encourage them to do the work. They do it because they love the elderly,” Fleming said.

Around 75 people from across Louisiana registered for this year’s conference.

“We’re learning new techniques and activities, and ways to implement new programs and resources for both demographics of the aging that we serve,” Jacqueline Green, Executive Director of the Calcasieu Council on Aging, said.

In the next few days, there will be several sessions for various positions.

“What I love the most is that all of these ladies and gentlemen who help us run our council on aging facilities here get to network with others who are in the same field that they are, and it broadens their horizons they walk away with knowledge and understanding,” Green said.

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The conference will continue through Thursday, Sept. 19.

For those interested in joining the Louisiana Aging Network Association, you can contact Debi Fleming via her email: debi@trcoa.com.



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Roundup: Steelmakers / Louisiana teachers / FDIC rules

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Expect a drop: U.S. steelmakers are projecting lower quarterly profits as automotive companies and equipment manufacturers dial down production. Higher interest rates, rising operating costs, a strengthening U.S. dollar and lower selling prices for commodities are damping activity at factories across the country. Read the full story from The Wall Street Journal. 

Education pay: Recent legislative efforts to address teacher pay and support in the classroom have brought temporary relief, but many argue that taxpayer funding falls short, leaving teachers struggling to manage their workloads and administrators their budgets. Read more from The Center Square. 

New rules: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on Tuesday proposed a new rule forcing banks to keep detailed records for customers of fintech apps after the failure of tech firm Synapse resulted in thousands of Americans being locked out of their accounts. The rule, aimed at accounts opened by fintech firms that partner with banks, would make the institution maintain records of who owns it and the daily balances attributed to the owner, according to an FDIC memo. Read more from CNBC. 

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Louisiana’s Major Disaster Declaration request approved

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Louisiana’s Major Disaster Declaration request approved


BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) – President Biden approved Governor Jeff Landry’s request for a Major Disaster Declaration for the State of Louisiana following Hurricane Francine.

This covers the following parishes

  • Ascension
  • Assumption
  • Lafourche
  • St. Charles
  • St. James
  • St. John the Baptist
  • St. Mary
  • Terrebonne Parishes.

More parishes may be added as damage is assessed.

“This federal assistance is vital to help Louisiana rebuild in the aftermath of Hurricane Francine. I appreciate the hard work our federal delegation, local officials, and our administration put in to get this over the finish line, ” said Governor Jeff Landry.

Residents and business owners who sustained losses in the designated areas can begin applying for assistance at DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 800-621-FEMA (3362), or by using the FEMA App.

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