Public hearing set in Ragley for proposed treating/CCS facility

Published 9:31 am Monday, March 2, 2026

A public hearing hosted by the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality is set for Thursday, March 5, beginning at 6 p.m. at the South Beauregard Recreation District 2 Community Center, 6719 La. 12 in Ragley.

The hearing is a chance for residents to have an opportunity to present oral statements, views, recommendations and opinions on a Proposed Initial Part 70 Air Operating Permit.

The proposed facility is a natural gas conditioning facility for treating and dehydrating natural gas, which will be capable of removing and capturing CO2 anticipated to be compressed into a C02 pipeline.

The permit was processed as an expedited permit in accordance with LAC 33:1 Chapter 18. This will be a formal hearing for the purpose of gathering facts and information according to the DEQ website and will not include a “question and answer” component.

The permit application, the proposed permit and the statement of basis are available to review at www.deq.louisiana.gov. Additional copies are also available to view at the Beauregard Parish Library South Beauregard Branch in Ragley at 7721 La. 12.

According to the application, the proposed updates would make the facility a Title V facility for criteria pollutants and a major source of toxic air pollutants (TAP) under the Louisiana Administrative Code (LAC) 33:III Chapter 51 and the facility would remain an area source of hazardous air pollutants (HAP) under the federal program.

The proposed facility will consist of one natural gas-fired combustion turbine, one natural gas emergency generator, one diesel emergency generator, six hot oil heater, four regen heaters, three glycol dehydration combustors, one CO2 dehydration unit vent, one component fugitives and other ancillary activities. The public notice also states that the proposed facility site would be an approximately 70-acre parcel.

The proposed facility is also projected to create approximately 15 direct permanent jobs during operations.

Ragley residents Lauren and Cody Hanchey’s home would be within two miles of the proposed facility. Lauren said she first heard about the public meeting by seeing a post on Facebook in a community page but has not been notified about the meeting otherwise. The couple’s biggest concern is having a facility that puts off toxic emissions into the air.

“When you raise a child who can’t always communicate or speak or tell you how they’re feeling or hurting – health and environmental safety matter,” Lauren said.

Lauren said as a special needs parent you not only want to protect your child the best you can but also for all kids that aren’t verbal yet and can’t tell you if they are feeling different. She wants to know how her family and neighbors will be protected if the permit passes.

“What happens to the rest of us that are outside of the fence line – does their monitoring stop at the fence line or will it extend outside of the fence line – what protections are in place for us,” she said.

Hanchey said she is asking that all the projected emissions be carefully reviewed and that safeguards are in place and that there is transparency in these decisions that affect the air that they breathe and for the safety of the community.

Hanchey hopes neighbors and citizens in Beauregard Parish attend the meeting with questions and concerns to be answered.