After three years of permitting delays, a company abandoned its plan to build a new grain elevator on the rural west bank of St. John the Baptist Parish.
Greenfield Exports LLC purchased various elevators along the Mississippi River and hoped to build the country’s first new grain export terminal in decades. The company promised the facility would be state-of-the-art with strict pollution control, but it ran into roadblocks almost immediately.
From the start, some residents were concerned about the project’s close proximity to a predominantly Black neighborhood, the additional air pollution, and its construction atop a former plantation. After watching industrial plants sprout up across the river, some feared that the grain elevator would throw the doors open to more industrial development in the community of Wallace and on the west bank. Community activists filed lawsuits aimed at slowing down or halting the project.
Plans included building 54 silos and a 275-foot-tall grain elevator that would have significantly altered the undeveloped landscape.
One year after publicly announcing the project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers found that the company failed to properly assess how the grain elevator would affect nearby historic sites. This propelled the agency, company, historic preservation groups and local activists into an extensive federal review to ensure the project would comply with the National Historic Preservation Act.
Last week, the Corps told the group that it would need until March 2025 to reach a decision. The Greenfield staff said this was the fifth delay in the past 18 months, which led to their decision to cancel the project.
Lynda Van Davis, Greenfield’s lead counsel and head of external affairs, said it was a “sad day” for the West Bank and a “painful decision” for the company. The company pitched the project as a source of much-needed economic development for the region, pledging to take a “local-first” approach and hire from the community. The facility was projected to create at least 260 jobs in the area, including 100 people who would have worked for the company.
“Today, we are regrettably no closer to an answer in the Corps’ review process than we were when we filed permits three years ago. The repeated delays and goal-post moving we have faced have finally become untenable, and as a result, our local communities lost,” Van Davis said.
Over three years, the cost to build the project ballooned, doubling from $400 million to $800 million.
“Time kills all projects,” she said.
The project had the support of top state and parish officials, including Gov. Jeff Landry.
“This grain facility would have been environmentally sound and brought hundreds of high paying jobs to St. John Parish,” he said. Both Landry and Van Davis accused special interest groups of derailing the project.
Joy Banner grew up in Wallace with her twin sister, Jo. Her family has lived in the community for generations and descended from people who were formerly enslaved on nearby plantations. The pair led the effort to oppose the grain elevator, even forming their own organization called the Descendants Project to preserve and uplift descendant communities like their home. For them, Greenfield’s decision is a major victory.
“We’ve fought for three long years to save the community, way of life, and heritage we love. Now the real work begins. We look forward to working with the community to heal, preserve, and build a healthy, bright future together,” Joy Banner said.
She also pushed back on the notion that resistance to the project wasn’t community-led. Over the years, the community has been split over whether the grain elevator was right for the area. The fight was reminiscent to a battle in the early 1990s with Formosa Plastics Corp., which plans to build a complex in St. James Parish.
Thirty years ago, the Taiwan-based company sought to build the world's largest wood pulp and rayon plant at Wallace but faced stiff opposition from residents and dropped the plans.
Banner’s organization tries to create other economic opportunities in the area, including tourism and cultural preservation. She felt the company chose Wallace because it didn’t expect resistance, but this fight gave her community agency. The grain terminal project is the latest to fall as more communities along the Mississippi River gain the resources to oppose industrial projects.
In neighboring St. James Parish, several projects have been delayed as the state's environmental justice movement has gained momentum. One proposal, South Louisiana Methanol, was canceled last year.
“This is what happens when you confront these legacies,” Banner said. “People have the power to stand up and resist. These companies, they’re not used to resistance that looks like ours.”
Throughout the campaign, Banner's organization worked with other historic preservation organizations including the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation. The region was named one of the country’s most endangered historic places last year by the National Trust, partly due to the threat posed by the grain elevator.
The 11-mile stretch of St. John’s west bank is the longest portion of the Mississippi River that hasn’t been industrialized. The National Park Service is currently assessing whether the area will become a National Historic Landmark District, which is the country’s most prestigious – and protective – historic designation.
“The West Bank of St. John the Baptist Parish has been called ‘the cradle of Creole culture’ and contains a remarkable concentration of nationally significant historic resources that are integral to telling the full American story,” said a spokesperson for the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The group celebrated the decision. “The National Trust is proud to have fought alongside Louisiana’s historic preservation community in opposition to Greenfield’s proposed terminal.”
The National Trust spokesperson said the Corps’ was “thoughtful and careful” during their review.
The Descendants Project also has several other ongoing lawsuits against the company, and Banner said that litigation will continue. Their successful campaign, in part, reflects the growing power of
A spokesperson for Greenfield said the company will not pursue constructing a new grain elevator in Louisiana and plans to withdraw its application from the Corps.
