BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry criticized former Gov. John Bel Edwards for concealing critical information from federal regulators to secure a key permit for the $2.9 billion Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion project, warning that taxpayers and coastal communities were put at risk.
Landry said Edwards’ administration withheld reports from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers detailing major concerns, including that annual dredging costs could exceed $50 million and that the project could exacerbate hypoxia, harm fisheries near Grand Isle, and threaten drinking water in Jefferson, Plaquemines, St. Bernard, and Orleans parishes.
“This project is like a real-life ‘Pelican Brief,’” Landry said on social media, referencing the John Grisham novel involving political corruption and environmental scandal.
A newly surfaced letter from the Army Corps, dated April 25, confirmed Landry’s claims. The agency stated that during the permit evaluation, the Edwards administration withheld information it knew would be important for regulators to assess environmental impacts. The Corps also said the state failed to secure local flood insurance compliance and may not be able to afford critical maintenance dredging.
In response, Edwards denied the accusations Friday, calling them “flat out wrong.” He said Louisiana had been an “excellent partner” with the Army Corps during his administration and blamed Landry’s own team for the permit suspension.
“The letter he posted online lists many of the real reasons USACE suspended the permit, most notably – that the Landry Administration stopped work on it and refused to handle the operations required,” Edwards said in a statement. “Gov. Landry’s attempt to scapegoat is exactly why partisan politics has no place in Louisiana’s coastal restoration work, but he can’t help himself.”
The Army Corps announced it was suspending the project’s Department of Army permit pending further review.
The Mid-Barataria project, intended to divert sediment and rebuild coastal wetlands lost to erosion, has been a cornerstone of Louisiana’s coastal restoration strategy.
In its letter, the Corps noted that while sediment diversion projects offer long-term land-building benefits, the Mid-Barataria project could also worsen storm surge, harm brown shrimp and oyster populations, and lead to higher water levels and tidal flooding in nearby communities.
The Corps emphasized that its decision to suspend the permit was based on new information, public statements, and actions by the state — not on its original evaluation of the project.
The state now faces a critical window: within 10 days, it must submit additional information or formally contest the findings to keep the project alive.
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