24 November 2025
By Elise Plunk
Contributing Writer
(lailluminator.com) – A group of Louisiana residents is suing Gov. Jeff Landry’s administration over state laws that allow the acquisition of private property against landowners’ wishes for pipelines transporting carbon dioxide.
Save My Louisiana, composed mostly of resident and elected officials from Allen, Beauregard, Livingston, Rapides and Vernon parishes, is the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit filed against the state last Thursday morning in the 19th Judicial District Court in Baton Rouge. Group president Gray Musgrove joined six other local citizens in the case against the governor and state Department of Conservation and Energy Secretary Dustin Davidson.
The governor’s office did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit. A Conservation and Energy spokesman declined to comment, citing department policy on pending litigation.
The lawsuit argues statutes on the use of eminent domain for carbon capture and storage in Louisiana law are unconstitutional. The laws “provide special privileges and immunities to private Corporations,” deny citizens their right to own property and cede judicial authority to the executive branch of state government.
There are currently 31 carbon capture and sequestration projects awaiting state approval, according to the Department of Conservation and Energy. The 101 total storage wells from these projects would cover 18 different parishes, mostly centered in Central and Southwest Louisiana.
Only one well, operated by Hackberry Carbon Sequestration in Cameron Parish, has received approval so far, with its permit okayed on Sept. 5. The 101 total storage wells from these projects would cover 18 different parishes, mostly centered in Central and South Louisiana.
Various state laws on the use of eminent domain for carbon transport and storage are listed in the lawsuit. Developers and government agencies that have successfully argued in court for the use of eminent domain to obtain property lean on the argument that the acquisition is for a greater good that outweighs the interests of the property owner. In the case of CO2 pipelines, the reasoning is that removing the greenhouse gas from the atmosphere and storing it underground is in the interest of public health by mitigating the effects of climate change.
Supporters of the plaintiffs disagree. They include Louisiana Treasurer John Fleming, a U.S. Senate candidate who joined the plaintiffs outside the courthouse for a news conference and shared his opposition to forced land acquisitions for carbon capture projects.
“Eminent domain is designed for the public good … This is not for the public benefit,” Fleming said. “This is for the benefit of a very, very small group of people who will end up making lots of money from this.”
The issue of carbon capture has divided a Republican Party in Louisiana that typically backs the fossil fuel industry, a sector that’s shown the greatest interest in developing the technology. Some GOP state lawmakers with projects proposed in their districts have called for more restrictions on carbon capture and local approval for such projects. Gov. Jeff Landry has said he would like to see Louisiana lead the way in putting the technology to use.
“Believe me, we all support the oil and gas industry in general,” said Fleming, a Republican. “But there’s a segment that wants to make even additional money by putting burden on the citizens, and that’s where we draw the line. This is not good for Louisiana.”
Mike Slocum, co-founder of Save My Louisiana and one of the plaintiffs, said that while his group staunchly backs fossil fuels, there’s a lack of transparency between the industry and state and residents of parishes where carbon capture projects are planned.
“As we started to have [Save My Louisiana] meetings, we found that the community didn’t really know what it was,” Slocum said. “We don’t think the whole state really realizes what’s happening.”
Opponents of carbon capture and CO2 transport have concerns over safety and environmental impacts. Most hold up the example of a ruptured CO2 pipeline in 2020 that forced the evacuation of the small town of Satartia, Mississippi, that resulted in 45 people being hospitalized. Other worries include possible groundwater contamination and the potential for leaks.
Beauregard Parish resident Mona DeFries, who owns land in Calcasieu Parish near a planned CO2 pipeline, said she feels the use of eminent domain for carbon capture is “a slap in the face” for property owners like her. Although she’s not a party in the lawsuit and hasn’t yet lost land to a project, DeFries said she supports its objectives and is concerned over environmental impacts and risk factors.
“The safety issues haven’t been expressed clear enough for us,” she said.
This article originally published in the November 24, 2025 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.