Andrea Gallo

ALT Gov. Jeff Landry’s push to settle dozens of lawsuits seeking to hold the oil and gas industry financially responsible for damage to Louisiana’s coast has gained momentum — but the results so far are impossible to judge. The settlements with major oil companies including Shell, Exxon and BP are being kept secret even though they potentially involve hundreds of millions of dollars or more in public assets, leaving it unclear how much they are worth and to what degree they will benefit coastal restoration. In refusing to release details, state officials have pointed to court orders sealing the settlements from public view until all the cases are completed, and noted that some of the litigation remains ongoing. But the state did not oppose the oil firms’ request for the court orders, giving tacit approval to keeping them sealed.

ALT A space technology company that has been involved in U.S. Department of Defense initiatives will launch two smaller-scale rockets in the Chandeleur Sound off the Louisiana coast this month, but many details of the plans have not been disclosed. On Wednesday, the U.S. Coast Guard sent an alert notifying mariners about two planned rocket launches, set to take place in the Chandeleur Sound, which lies between St. Bernard Parish and the Chandeleur Islands. The launches will take place between Nov. 9 and Nov. 24. The Spaceport Company, which specializes in launching rockets from offshore, will conduct the two launches. The rockets are modest and not intended to go into orbit, said Tom Marotta, the CEO of the Virginia-based company.

ALT The purpose of the launches is not clear. Marotta said The Spaceport Company is a subcontractor for a firm that contracts with the Department of Defense and thus could not discuss the details of the project. The launches fall under “DOD-sponsored activities,” he said. The Spaceport Company is a member of the “Golden Dome Alliance,” a group of more than 2,000 firms that could be eligible to receive defense funding in support of the creation of a missile defense system. President Donald Trump ordered the creation of the elaborate Golden Dome missile defense system — which would put weapons in space — last year.

ALT Opening of news story: A citizens group and three residents sued the Vermilion Parish police jury and a newly revived industrial development board Monday, alleging they repeatedly violated Louisiana’s open meetings law while advancing SpaceX’s planned $100 billion spaceport. The suit says the police jury revived the Vermilion Parish Industrial Development Board, inactive since 1997, at a July 15 meeting. On Aug. 25, the board approved a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement with SpaceX tied to a 25-year property tax exemption estimated at nearly $24 billion. The agenda referred to the deal only as “Project Osprey,” a code name the suit says was used so that “even if a member of the public happened across the meeting notice, they wouldn’t know what the meeting was about.”