Plaquemines LNG, a liquefied natural gas export facility located on the Mississippi River between Myrtle Grove and Port Sulphur, has received fast-tracked permitting from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under a national energy emergency declaration issued by the Trump administration. The accelerated review process reduced the standard 30-day public comment period to 10 days, which concluded in early July. The expansion, which would nearly double the facility’s size from approximately 590 acres to about 1,220 acres, is expected to receive quick approval and would make it the largest LNG export terminal in North America according to its owner, Virginia-based Venture Global.
Environmental organizations have raised concerns about the expedited review process and its potential impacts on the surrounding ecosystem. The Army Corps estimates the $18 billion expansion could damage up to 470 acres of wetlands and water bottoms in central Plaquemines Parish, roughly 25 miles south of New Orleans. The region already faces significant environmental challenges, having lost more than 250 square miles of land over the past 60 years due to subsidence, sea level rise, and erosion. State projections indicate another 300 square miles—approximately half the parish’s remaining land—could disappear within the next 50 years.
The emergency declaration could enable hundreds of additional energy projects to bypass normal permitting procedures required under the Clean Water Act, potentially accelerating an already expanding LNG industry with more than 30 terminals under construction or proposed nationwide. Critics question whether exporting natural gas abroad aligns with the stated rationale for the energy emergency declaration, which emphasized strengthening domestic energy supply and security. Plaquemines LNG exported most of its gas last year to European markets, with Germany receiving the largest share at 19 percent.
The facility ranks among Louisiana’s largest industrial polluters, permitted to release approximately 8.1 million tons of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases annually. The proposed expansion could increase annual emissions to at least 9 million tons, though the company plans to implement carbon capture and sequestration technology. Some Louisiana political leaders have backed the expansion, citing potential economic benefits and job creation, while environmental advocates warn that increased greenhouse gas emissions will accelerate climate change impacts and land loss in the region.
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