Billy Nungesser says he'll go to jail if it means better protection
The Plaquemines Parish council today may vote to defy federal regulators and fund the money for construction of an unapproved sand berm to protect the coast from the Gulf oil slick. Parish President Billy Nungesser says he's ready to go to jail, if he has to.
When the council meets in Belle Chasse today, Nungesser will ask them to approve $1 million so the parish can hire a dredge to start building a six-foot high, miles long sand berm. He says he's tired of federal officials delaying the permits.
"Let'em put us in jail. I'm not going to sit around and watch while our marsh is destroyed," Nungesser told WWL's Garland Robinette.
Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser:
Nungesser said he'd rather go ahead and spend up front, and fight it out for reimbursement later. He also said some of the critics of his plan don't know what they're talking about.
"Somebody said, 'well, you're just trying to get BP to pay for your barrier islands.' If that were the case, I'd have asked them to pump it 18 feet high and a thousand feet wide, because that's what we want to do," Nungesser said. "This ain't a home run. We could see a storm top it. But this will give us a fair shot."
AI
