We, the citizens of Vermilion – Iberia parishes and Louisiana are filing this petition, this 24th day of August in 2012 regarding the issue of AGL Resources/ Jefferson Island Storage & Hub’ s natural gas salt dome cavern expansion at the Jefferson Island Salt Dome under Lake Peigneur.
Currently, at the Napoleonville Salt Dome in Assumption Parish, Louisiana a catastrophe involving a giant sink-hole grows daily. Contamination of drinking water and earth from salt cavern gas storage leakage into the drinking water has resulted in evacuation of hundreds of residents with an unknown future.
In 2003 numerous residents were relocated for the same reason. in 2009 we filmed the existing subsidence and bubbling at their water wells in from natural gas leakage.
At Lake Peigneur we unsuccessfully fought against the development of the first 2 natural gas storage caverns in 1994, and since 2005 we have actively opposed the development of additional storage cavern expansion.
We have repeatedly asked the state to require a federal standard Environmental Impact Statement. Now in light of the catastrophe in Assumption Parish we are asking for AGL Resources/Jefferson Island Storage & Hub to voluntarily withdraw their permit application. They have refused. We have asked Governor Jindal to use his privilege as Governor to deny the permit application and block all future requests for salt cavern storage at the Jefferson Island Salt Dome.
The following are a FEW reasons for our requests:
1. Lake Peigneur has made the History Channel, Megadisasters as the "Swirling Vortex". The Discovery Channel also is completing a documentary on our catastrophe.
2. Since 2005 we have unexplained bubbling in Lake Peigneur. The bubbling is not typical natural methane bubbling.
3. We have provided expert documentation that the Chicot Aquifer which provides drinking water to 15 parishes will have salt water intrusion and contamination from other sources due to the withdrawal of 5 million gallons of water daily. This is from the drawdown effect not the quantity of water in the Chicot Aquifer.
4. We have 4000 (four thousand) residents in a one-mile radius of Lake Peigneur, a school, and a town.
5. There is current subsidence at Lake Peigneur and brine from the salt dome continues to be withdrawn from private source. We do not know what effects the brine withdrawal is having on the existing caverns.
6. In the past 2 years 2 other salt domes had failure one in Mississippi and the other in Texas. The failures consisted of natural gas leakage into drinking water and sink-holes.
There are numerous additional reasons why we need your support to stop this project. We appreciate your support.
