Residents of Baltimore's Curtis Bay neighborhood call for federal intervention to address the "unbearable" coal dust pollution that they claim affects their air quality and daily lives. In response, Rep. Kweisi Mfume has urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to investigate the issue, specifically the uncovered coal trains that are believed to contribute to the pollution, according to a report by CBS News Baltimore. Community members have reported a visible increase in coal dust presence, which correlates with health complaints and a need to alter daily activities to cope with the contaminated air.
In a congressional hearing, Mfume highlighted the severity of the problem, particularly noting the region's high asthma rates—Baltimore City has the second highest rate of asthma nationwide. Mfume also mentioned that attempts at discussion with CSX, the company responsible for transporting coal, had been fruitless. "We've tried to have conversations with CSX and others who are responsible in many respects for the mounds of coal in many respects. Those conversations have gone nowhere," Mfume said, per CBS News Baltimore. CSX has insisted that their operations meet air quality standards, citing their fence line air monitoring system which purportedly shows compliance with EPA National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
On the other hand, local initiatives have been seeking regulatory changes for years. The community, backed by organizations like the Curtis Bay Land Trust, has been advocating for coal trains to adopt hardcovers to mitigate aerial pollution. Carlos Sanchez from the Curtis Bay Land Trust stated, "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," according to an interview with WMAR-2 News.
The plea for EPA engagement stems from a collective dissatisfaction with the status quo—a sentiment echoed by residents Jerome Pearson and David Brown, who have had to adapt their home lives due to the overpowering odor and dust. "The last five years, it got really bad. I can't sit on my deck, can't enjoy my deck or nothing like that because the odor be so thick," Pearson said, as reported by CBS News Baltimore. Similarly, Brown lamented the necessity to keep windows shut even in summer to prevent the ingress of black soot—a result, they believe, of inadequate pollution control measures currently in place.
