On April 4, a jury ordered Chevron, the parent company of Texaco, to pay Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana more than $744M in damages because of its links to the deterioration of the state’s wetlands. This historic moment provides an enormous opportunity to protect the state’s coastline.

The decision is a step forward in a 12-year-long battle for coastal parishes. The ruling will likely influence outcomes in similar lawsuits against oil and gas companies and bring much-needed funding to restoring and protecting the wetlands. But this is also a critical moment for Louisiana. State and local governments must ensure that the money is used for coastal restoration and protection efforts –  not diverted to unrelated projects, like more prisons, or used to offset budget shortfalls.

As the history of this particular case demonstrates, opportunities like this don’t come around often.

The long journey to this ruling began in 2013 when Plaquemines Parish and other coastal parishes filed 42 lawsuits against oil and gas companies in Louisiana state courts. The lawsuits claim the companies violated Louisiana’s State and Local Coastal Resources Management Act of 1978 and that coastal parishes are owed damages and remedial and restoration obligations because of the rapid loss and deterioration of coastal wetlands caused by the companies’ activities.

The real backbone of Louisiana’s law is the federal Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972. With the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency in 1970 and the Clean Water Act in 1972, multiple efforts to stem or reverse corporate environmental damage were pushed through Congress and the states. The Coastal Zone Management Act was passed around this time to help states preserve, protect, and manage their shorelines by encouraging coordination at the federal and state levels. The fact that most states have coastal management programs and plans is the result of the Coastal Zone Management Act. States with these programs are eligible for federal grants for activities like redevelopment for urban waterfronts and ports, land conservation, and improving access for public beaches and coastal areas.

With the Coastal Zone Management Act in place, Louisiana crafted its own policy, called theState and Local Coastal Resources Management Act. This law protects and restores coastal resources and uses sustainable development practices when opportunities for economic growth emerge. The problem with the law — and one of Chevron’s arguments in the lawsuit — is that by 1978, most of the damage had been done. Louisiana’s first inland oil field was established in 1901, and the first offshore oil well opened in the late 1930s. The state had already signed off on the methods used to create oil and gas extraction infrastructure, including dredging miles and miles of wetlands to create canals for transportation and pipelines. Oil and gas companies  also tried to argue that their activities were conducted under federal regulation, and that the cases should be moved to federal court.

However, the district judges weren’t buying it.  The back-and-forth on this issue is why Plaquemines Parish’s case has taken 12 years, with Eastern District Court Judge Martin Feldman commenting on the delaying tactics, “Frankly, I think it’s kind of shameful.”¹

On the issue that damage to the environment had been done before the passage of the law,  Plaquemines made the argument that “protection of Louisiana’s coast is now a matter of extreme urgency,” calling land loss in the region a “crisis”² — a statement that Chevron has not denied. The goal of state law is to protect the coast, and it is very clear the effect past and current extraction efforts have had on Louisiana’s wetlands.

Chevron has already stated it will appeal the decision. However, considering the dozen years this case has been going back and forth,  it’s highly unlikely an appeal would be successful—not impossible, but unlikely. And lawsuits brought by other coastal parishes have a chance of similar success against Chevron and other oil and gas companies operating in the region.

Now is the time for the state and parishes to develop strategies for allocating funds from these rulings into coastal protection and restoration projects. The first step is to ensure money is spent on projects identified in the state’s coastal master plan. That means placing money into the Coastal Trust Fund, which is protected by Louisiana’s constitution and dedicated to projects and programs to preserve and restore the state’s coast. State mineral revenues, federal government funding, and other sources replenish the trust fund. Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority then can use this money to fund projects along the coast.

A second step would be for the state legislature, in its upcoming general session, to adopt a resolution supporting a framework for the distribution of penalties adopted in SB3. Passed during the 2022 legislative session, Act 282, written by State Senator Bret Allain, outlines that funds collected from coastal zone violations must go towards coastal protection, restoration, hurricane defense, and resilience.

One potential gap in current state law is that if the budget falls short mid-year, the state can dip into the Coastal Trust Fund. The amount that can be rededicated is capped at 5 percent, though money received through the Deepwater Horizon settlement is off limits. That cap should be eliminated or at least lowered as a demonstration of the state’s dedication to the protection of its natural resources and its coastal communities. More than 2 million Louisianans, almost half of the state’s population, live on the state’s coast so investments through the Coastal Trust Fund are an investment in Louisiana.

The jury’s decision in Plaquemines Parish v. Chevron marks a significant moment in the ongoing struggle for Louisiana’s coastal preservation. The ruling holds Chevron accountable for damage to Louisiana’s wetlands and sets a precedent for future lawsuits. The potential influx of funding presents an opportunity for coastal restoration. By ensuring these resources are directed towards coastal protection and not diverted to unrelated projects, Louisiana can take a vital step in safeguarding its vulnerable wetlands for future generations.

Thanks to Charles Sutcliffe of the National Wildlife Federation for his input on this post.