South Korean steelmaker Hyundai is to invest almost US$6 billion on opening its first North Amercian steel facility in Ascension Parish, Louisiana, according to an online report by WBRZ.com
It is claimed that a White House meeting last week with President Donald Trump and Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as well as much of the state’s Congressional delegation hailed the new facility, but all is not well according to Ashley Gaignard, founder of Rural Roots Louisiana.
Gaignard’s worries are centred around carcinogenic chemicals already present in the state and concerns about ammonia plants that are on the way and, of course, the new steel plant. She told WBRZ that her chief concern was a decrease in population because of the new arrivals.
The alternative view is that the steel plant will bring 1,300 direct jobs to the area and around 4,100 indirect positions that will boost infrastructure in Louisiana.
The new facility has been described as a ‘major milestone fortifying America’s manufacturing future’, according to Congressman Troy Carter.
The 1,700-acre site for the facility is currently sugar cane fields located near to the RiverPlex MegaPark industrial centre on the west bank of the Mississippi close to Modeste, home of many elderly and disabled people who say they don’t want the plant near their homes.
Gaignard says the plant won’t benefit the local community and claims that the steel plant and chemical and ammonia plants associated with the facility are not safe. She believes there is a need to amplify the voices of the local communities, claiming that the state has ‘failed to represent us’ or ‘show us that they care about us’.
Source: WBRZ.com