louisiana coastal restoration gulf oil spill.

FILE - The nearly $3 billion Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion project along the Mississippi River, intended to stave off coastal land loss in southeastern Louisiana, is seen during a flyover with the environmental coalition group Restore the Mississippi River Delta, Aug. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Jack Brook, File)

Louisiana cancels $3 billion coastal restoration project funded by oil spill settlement

Louisiana is officially canceling a $3 billion coastal restoration project funded by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement. The Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion Project aimed to rebuild over 20 square miles of land in southeast Louisiana to combat erosion and sea level rise. Conservation groups supported the project as a science-based solution to climate change. However, Republican Gov. Jeff Landry opposed it, citing harm to local oystermen and the fishing industry. On Thursday, a coalition of federal agencies overseeing the settlement funds declared the project “no longer viable” because of litigation and a suspended federal permit after the state halted work.

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