Louisiana
Louisiana looks to Idaho National Laboratory for a nuclear strategy – East Idaho News
IDAHO FALLS – Louisiana leaders are working with Idaho National Laboratory’s Frontiers Initiative to help the state — known for its hydrocarbon and chemical industries — become a national leader in advanced nuclear energy. INL experts will help the state develop a strategic plan to use nuclear energy to power its manufacturing sector and support growing grid-scale electrical demands.
Louisiana is well positioned for advanced nuclear technologies. Chemical and petroleum production is at the core of Louisiana’s manufacturing industry. Louisiana supplies 6.5 gigawatts for onsite industrial heat and power generation, and that industrial energy demand is growing.
“That’s why Louisiana and advanced nuclear will partner in the future,” said Steven Aumeier, senior advisor of strategic programs at INL. “It’s inevitable. It’s smart.”
Louisiana also is a pro nuclear state, said Eric Skrmetta, commissioner of the Louisiana Public Service Commission (LPSC), the agency that regulates utilities in the state.
Entergy Louisiana owns and operates two conventional reactors with approximately 2,000 megawatts of capacity in Louisiana. This spring, the utility formally notified the LPSC of its plan to take initial steps to advance new nuclear technologies in the form of nuclear batteries, microreactors and small modular reactors. This announcement followed a meeting the Frontiers Initiative organized with industry, government and LPSC in February.
The political climate also is favorable. Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, a strong supporter of the oil and gas industry, has signaled his support for technology that produces reliable and affordable American-made energy. Former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu serves as a senior advisor and infrastructure coordinator to President Joe Biden.
Skrmetta said he recognizes the need to facilitate discussions on advanced nuclear technologies given the economic advantages of clean energy generation.
“Fifty percent of our industrials are chemical plants and there’s a demand for net-zero power,” he said. “Louisiana is in a unique position to do this.”
Paul Kjellander, a former Idaho utility commissioner and contractor for INL’s Frontiers Initiative, will lay the groundwork for Louisiana’s strategic plan.
The Frontiers Initiative worked on a similar effort with Wyoming.
In Wyoming, the initiative is working with state officials and University of Wyoming under a memorandum of understanding signed on May 4, where the lab and state agreed to collaborate on nuclear technologies, business and innovation. That collaboration resulted in the development of Wyoming Energy Authority’s advanced nuclear strategic plan. INL, through the Frontiers Initiative, continues to be engaged with Wyoming’s top industry leaders to establish market-leading positions utilizing advanced nuclear technologies.
Kjellander is borrowing from Wyoming’s advanced nuclear energy playbook, drawing on three strategic pillars — generation, value and supply chain — to focus the framework.
“INL’s Frontiers effort has helped set the table for next-mover states to begin plotting a path for advanced nuclear energy deployment,” said Kjellander. “Building from past successes will greatly assist the LPSC as it looks to craft an energy driven economic strategy that includes advanced nuclear energy. We are excited to help Louisiana as it takes strides to address the energy transition and enhance its global competitiveness.”
In June, the LPSC hosted the launch of a strategic plan development under what it calls the Louisiana Advanced Nuclear Competitive Edge. On behalf of the Frontiers Initiative, Kjellander organized panel discussions that included a diverse group of executives from key chemical and oil and gas stakeholders, regulators, manufacture electric utilities, port authority, military representatives, and university professionals.
Participants were unanimous that near-term deployment of advanced nuclear energy should be a priority. But more work is needed to answer key questions critical for planning.
“Having more fuel diversity in our energy portfolio is critical,” said Brian Hobbs, chief executive officer of 1803 Electric Cooperative. “Advanced nuclear can help provide fuel diversity and, importantly, offers sustainable, dispatchable clean energy to provide reliability and economic benefits to the state.”
Larry Hand, vice president of regulatory and public affairs for Entergy Louisiana, said consumer demand for clean energy is driving the need to be competitive. “In order to compete globally, we need clean energy,” he said. “That’s what we hear from our customers.”
“Most of our customers and investors are demanding and expecting decarbonized products,” said Luca Balbo, director of Dow Chemical’s Saint Charles operation site. “We expect many will be willing to pay for at least part of the cost increase, if any.”
There are also geopolitical factors at play.
Russia and China are building nuclear reactors at a rapid pace. China has 27 nuclear reactors under construction — over two and a half times more than any other country. Russia plans to use nuclear reactors to power Arctic ports year-around. The European Union has also adopted rules for taxing imports based on the amount of carbon dioxide that companies emit making those goods.
A key component of the Frontiers Initiative is helping states and U.S. companies win the global competition for low-emission economic activity, or as Aumeier puts it, “the new frontier of global competition.”
“National security interests will continue to grow in influence and impact policy,” said Aumeier. “Economic security is national security. It’s that simple.”
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Massive alligator causes chaos, attempts to avoid capture
Officers wrangled and released an alligator after it was spotted near a home in Livingston Parish, Louisiana.
Louisiana may expand its wild alligator harvesting opportunities to recreational hunters if the Legislature passes a bill that secured unanimous approval in a committee hearing March 11.
Franklin state Sen. Robert Allain’s Senate Bill 244 would authorize the Louisiana Wildlife Commission to create a recreational season that would be open to 5,000 hunters annually, each with a two-gator limit.
The state already has a commercial hunting season for alligators, which is chronicled in the popular “Swamp People” TV reality series.
“We think the time is right,” Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Secretary Tyler Bosworth testified during the Senate Natural Resources Committee hearing. “We want to provide a recreational opportunity for the common folk of Louisiana.”
Louisiana’s alligator population has exploded in the past 50 years from fewer than 100,000 to more than 3 million today. Of those, about 2 million are wild with another 1 million farmed.
That’s at least twice the population in Florida, the state with the second most number of alligators.
And their Louisiana numbers have grown throughout the state where they can be commonly spotted from Lake Martin in Breaux Bridge to Caddo and Cross lakes in Shreveport to Caldwell Parish in northeastern Louisiana.
“This is a conservation success story on the highest level,” LDWF general counsel Garrett Cole said during the hearing. “This would create a true recreational opportunity outside our commercial season.”
Garrett said hunters would compete for hunting tags through a lottery will statewide opportunities. Recreational hunters would be limited to hook and line harvesting from land. No gators could be taken by boat as commercial hunters are allowed to do.
If approved, the first season could take place beginning Oct. 1.
Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.
Responsible Anglers United, LDWF release bass into Lake Bouef
Responsible Anglers United team up with Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to release more than 3,000 Florida bass into Lake Bouef on Oct. 17.
While Louisiana’s largest lake, the Toledo Bend Reservoir, spans 1,200 miles of shoreline, the state’s deepest lake only spans 1,125 acres.
Lake Peigneur is the deepest lake in Louisiana, with a depth measuring approximately 200 feet.
Lake Peigneur is a brackish lake, meaning it contains saltwater but has less salinity than seawater, located in New Iberia Parish in South Louisiana.
How did Lake Peigneur become the deepest lake in Louisiana?
Lake Peigneur was not always considered the deepest lake in Louisiana, as it was only a 10-foot-deep freshwater lake 40 years ago.
On Nov. 20, 1980, an oil rig crew was attempting to free a 14-inch drill bit when they heard popping noises and the rig began to tilt. Shortly after the crew abandoned the rig and headed for shore, the crew watched the 150-foot oil rig disappear into the 10-foot-deep lake.
Soon, a whirlpool formed in place of the oil rig. The whirlpool grew rapidly until it was able to suck up nearby boats, barges, trees, a house and half an island.
At the same location of the oil drilling site, there was also a salt mine, and when the whirlpool formed after the oil rig collapsed, the mine began to fill with water. As the whirlpool grew, water was able to enter the mine at such a force that it caused a geyser to spew out of the mine’s opening for hours until the lake was drained.
After the lake was emptied, the Delcambre Canal began to flow backward, marking the only time in history that the Gulf of Mexico flowed into the continental U.S. This backflow continued until the entire mine and lake were filled with water, except now the lake was filled with saltwater, according to an article published on Louisiana Tech Digital Commons.
Can you swim in Lake Peigneur?
Before the oil rig and salt mine accident, Lake Peigneur was a popular spot for fishing and recreational activities. However, since the lake is almost entirely surrounded by private property, visitors will have to enter the nearby Rip Van Winkle Gardens in order to get a closer look, according to Atlas Obscura.
While there are no reports indicating the lake is unsafe, the lake is not exactly developed for public access. However, there are things to do around Lake Peigneur, like visiting Rip Van Winkle Gardens on Jefferson Island, or visiting Avery Island to tour the Tabasco Factory.
Presley Bo Tyler is a reporter for the Louisiana Deep South Connect Team for USA Today. Find her on X @PresleyTyler02 and email at PTyler@Gannett.com
PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla. — A local fisherman raised concerns about the substance now coating Opal Beach, citing a recent oil spill off the coast of Louisiana.
WEAR News went to officials with the Gulf Islands National Seashore and Escambia County to find out the cause.
They say it’s not related to an oil spill, but is in fact algae.
The Marine Resources Division says they can understand beachgoers’ concerns, and hope to raise awareness.
“You don’t even want to get near it because it’s so gooey and sticky,” local fisherman Larry Grossman said. “It was accumulating on my beach cart wheels yesterday, and it felt like an oil product.”
Grossman messaged WEAR News on Monday after noticing something brown and oozy in the sand. He says it started showing up by Fort Pickens and stretched down to Opal Beach.
Grossman said a park service employee told him it could be oil from a recent spill in Louisiana. So he took a message to social media, sparking some reactions and raising questions.
“it certainly didn’t seem like an algae bloom because I was in the water, I caught a fish and I put some water in the cooler to keep my fish cool and it almost looked like oil in it,” Grossman said. “I know some people think it’s an algae bloom, but it certainly smelled and felt and looked like oil.”
A Gulf Islands National Seashore spokesperson confirmed to WEAR News on Tuesday that the substance is algae.
WEAR News crews were at the beach as officials with the Escambia County Marines Resources Division came out take samples.
“What I found here washed up on the beach is some algae — filamentous algae, single celled algae — that washed ashore in some onshore winds,” said Robert Turpin, Escambia County Marines Resources Division manager. “This is the spring season, so with additional sunlight, our plants, they grow in warmer waters, with plenty of sunlight.”
Turpin says this algae is not harmful.
He also addressed the concerns that this could be oil, saying he’s familiar with what oil spills look like.
He says he appreciates when people like Grossman raise the concerns.
“The last thing in the world we want is something to gain traction on social media that is faults in nature that could harm our tourism,” Turpin said. “Our tourism is very important to our economy, and we want to give the right information out to the public so we all enjoy the beaches and enjoy them safely.”
Turpin says if you see something or suspect something may be harmful on the beach, avoid it and contact Escambia County Marine Resources.
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