Update: On August 25th, A massive fire and chemical leak broke out at the the Marathon Oil Refinery, just a few miles from Wallace. Nearby residents were evacuated and many more were given a shelter-in-place order. The toxic disaster underscored why Wallace – one of the 11 most endangered historic places in the United States — must be protected from new industry.
The West Bank of St. John the Baptist Parish, a pristine 11-mile stretch along the Mississippi River, is a historic and cultural gem that is on the brink of irreversible damage.
This area, recently recognized by the National Trust for Historic Preservation as one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Places due to the proposed influx of toxic industry, is home to many descendants of enslaved people from the nearby Whitney and Evergreen Plantations. Its survival as an agrarian landscape for over 300 years stands as a testament to its significance and resilience.
But now, Greenfield Louisiana LLC, a company from Denver, wants to erase this vital history by building what would be one of the world’s largest grain elevators — the Greenfield Terminal — in the heart of this historic area. This towering structure, as tall as the Louisiana Superdome, would cause serious environmental harm, potentially disturb archaeological remains and burial grounds, and become a gateway for further industrialization by the oil and gas industry.