After Oil Spill, Fear and Loathing in Louisiana

Houma, La. -- It is fitting that South Louisiana is often associated with Mardi Gras. Being here for five years I find life often mirrors it in the form of joy followed by penance. The first weekend of Mardi Gras this year was rung in with the New Orleans Saints winning the Super Bowl. After all of the heartache of the last few years a moment in time came when miracles came true. At that time people of all walks of life from New Orleans to the bayous thought anything possible. Now it seems like a long lent is upon us with no seafood to eat on Fridays.

The Saints were the only conversation in Houma a few months ago, they have been replaced by the oil spill in the Gulf. I have seen hurricanes come and go, yet this seems like an extended hurricane. No business or career is now safe, and the penniless to the millionaire are wondering what will be left. With the global economy faltering and oil consumption declining, small layoffs started hitting South Louisiana a year and a half ago. Last fall the uncertainty was put aside for the Saints magic season. The fun loving Cajuns that were laid off figured things would pick up, and often said they were happy to be off to catch all the games.

Now we watch everything slip away a little more each day. I lost my job a year and a half ago as a construction superintendent. At that time the tax credits and incentives for building in the wake of Katrina ran out. The booming oilfield had slowed which stopped much of the construction associated with it as well. Things were starting to look up this spring and I was looking forward to new possibilities. All construction is now off. The shrimpers, fishermen, charter fishermen, crabbers and oystermen have been steadily falling off and some find temporary jobs with the spill.

With the six month drilling moratorium we are now seeing contracts dropped and people laid off. The oilfield that drives our economy seems as though it is receiving last rites. Oilfield service companies, boat companies, shipbuilders, port workers, drillers, office personnel as well as many others add to the counts that grow daily. Oilfield suppliers are losing orders with increasing frequency down to the grocery stores that supply the oil platforms. A couple with a printing company who has been in business fifty years may be facing closing the doors. Local lumber companies are looking at the possibility of there being no new homes or businesses being built. Schoolteachers are facing budget shortfalls with no possibility of going to a neighboring district if let go. Health care professionals are scared that the public hospital is soon to be closed with no tax revenue to support it. These are not all those facing fear, just a short sample of some people I know.

The oil spill alone has been a horrible shock. Now a total and sudden economic collapse faces entire communities in southern Louisiana. Some will gain other opportunities but those numbers will be few. Oilfield workers that can keep a job will have to face riskier places to work like Africa or South America. Professionals that are able to go elsewhere will not be able to sell homes in a place with no demand. Most will just be stuck as the economic state of the country does not have extra jobs in other areas. This is the plight we face as our industry moves away.