BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - Residents from Louisiana’s river parishes protested Wednesday against a state initiative designed to fast-track $80 billion in outside investment over the next decade, including projects from corporations like Meta and Hyundai. That investment is set to bring in thousands of permanent jobs.

The protesters traveled to voice opposition to Governor Landry’s Louisiana Lightning Speed Initiative, an executive order signed in September that accelerates the permitting process for major industrial projects.

“We have 4 million people in Louisiana, and those 4 million people are being sent out to the river parishes for jobs that we don’t have in our immediate area,” said Gail LeBoeuf of Inclusive Louisiana.

Concerns over environmental and cultural impacts

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