The politically-charged lawsuit against almost 100 oil and gas companies continues, even as one of the most vocal proponents, Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East’s board Vice-Present John Barry was not on the list of nominations submitted to Governor Bobby Jindal for appointment to the board’s open seats. His term ended in June and Governor Jindal’s coastal advisor, Garrett Graves, had already said a couple of weeks ago that those who supported the lawsuit would not be appointed to the board.
Barry was instrumental in getting the lawsuit filed, and was not surprised that his name was not included in the list of six nominees selected this past Monday. One of the two men selected in place of Barry will likely be chosen to replace Barry, even though it is not known at this point what their views on the lawsuit are. Graves has said in the past that if the nominees are asked in the interview if they support the lawsuit and they say, “yes,” it will likely be a short interview. The governor does have the options of appointing his own choice to the board.
The lawsuit was filed in June and seeks to hold the oil and gas industry responsible for the damage and injury to the Louisiana wetlands, claiming the damage was done because of the construction of pipelines and canals. The suit wants the industry to pay for the damage – or at least their fair share of the damage.
The president of the SLFPA-E, Tim Doody, also voted for the lawsuit; however, he hasn’t been as vocal in his support as Barry has been. The vote by the 9-panel board was unanimous in approving the lawsuit, but Governor Jindal only has three seats to appoint.
Source:
nola.com, “John Barry not among nominees for Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East seats” Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, Sep. 30, 2013