BALTIMORE — Coal pollution is a major concern for people living in Curtis Bay.
They say testing on dust from the area shows trace amounts of coal.
"Everybody says the same thing. There's this dark dust, probably coal dust, on their homes, on their cars, inside of their homes to the point where they can't even open their windows," said Carlos Sanchez with the Curtis Bay Land Trust, which pushes for a cleaner environment in the area.
Community groups from around the country submitted a petition to the Environmental Protection Agency to require coal-carrying train cars to put hardcovers on top.
Limiting how much pollution would enter the air.
That's in addition to local groups pushing for the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) to get tougher on coal pollution.
"That was a petition that was sent to MDE about ten years ago. So, it's been quite some time trying to get the coal terminal and the coal trains covered."
Congressman Kweisi Mfume pressured the EPA in a congressional hearing, asking why nothing has been done.
"Poor white, poor Black, poor Latino kids are living there right now breathing that air. Growing, and developing, and increasing the number of asthma and other related respiratory diseases. To me, that's much more important than the profit margin of some of these companies," said Mfume.
Mfume invited EPA administrator Michael Regan to Curtis Bay to see the impacts coal dust is having on the community.
So far, a decision hasn't been made on the petition to require train cars to be covered.
We reached out to CSX, the company who transports coal in and out of Curtis Bay and here's their response:
CSX is committed to environmental compliance and strives to protect the environment and the safety and health of the public, our customers, and employees in all aspects of our operations.
CSX is proud of its nearly 200-year history in Baltimore and the Curtis Bay area. Our coal pier operations adhere to strict regulatory standards, and we regularly invest in technologies and practices that go above and beyond those standards set by federal and state governments, and maintain our own operational standards for environmental management, including those found in our environmental policy.
The data from Collaborative Investigation by MDE and others as analyzed by third-party experts indicates the community is in attainment with the US Environmental Protection Agency National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for PM2.5 and PM10.
Further as required by our air permit, we installed a fence line air monitoring system along the perimeter of the property. Data from the fence line air monitoring is shared quarterly with the MDE and shows that the Curtis Bay facility is in compliance with the NAAQS for PM2.5 and PM10.
It’s our focus to continue constructive discussions with Congressman Mfume and the Maryland Department of the Environment that can lead to a better understanding of our commitment to sustainability as well as collaborative efforts to address community concerns.
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