Republished due to requests in comments
The
lawsuit is being brought by the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority East (SLFPAE) which was formed by an 81% vote to amend the state constitution following Hurricane Katrina.
The claim is that the oil industry is partially responsible for the loss of 2000 square miles of coastal land that once protected New Orleans. They did that by dredging channels and other actions that allowed salt water intrusion resulting in the death of the plants that once held that land in place.
Here's where it gets interesting:
Legally, our case is based on two principles. First, most of the industry operations were conducted under permits that required the operator to minimize the damage they caused and restore the area to its pre-existing condition when operations ceased. We believe the industry did not comply with these permits. The second principle comes from Louisiana's unique legal tradition. The rest of the country's jurisprudence is based on English common law traditions, but Louisiana's is based on "civil law," which goes back to the Romans. For centuries, and included in state statutes for 200 years, is a concept called "servitude of drain." This prohibits one party from increasing the flow of water on someone else's property. By destroying coastal land, the industry increased the surge coming our way. It broke this law.
Take the jump for more.
The levee board is suing the oil, gas, and pipeline industry because of this increased storm surge, which forces us to expend more money to maintain and possibly build a more extensive flood protection system than would otherwise be the case.
For example, we just conducted a study of the land bridge extending into Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans East. If that narrow spit of land disappears, the ocean will roar unchecked into the lake and threaten the lives and property of people who have never been threatened before. Reinforcing that alone would cost $1.2 billion. We don't have that money. We don't have a fraction of that money. And that's just one project. As we look to the future needs of protecting New Orleans, we see enormous expenses that we cannot possibly meet.
Of course there's push back and there will be attempts to "modify" the board to make the lawsuit go away.
Additional info on French legal system with h/t to rubyr:
http://www.slate.com/...
I encourage all to follow the link to the article for much more information...fair use restrictions and all that.