According to recent findings from Johns Hopkins researchers, residents of South Baltimore's Curtis Bay neighborhood are facing a gritty problem. Coal dust has been discovered on the surfaces of homes, schools, and playgrounds. The dust confirms longstanding community concerns over potential health risks associated with the nearby open-air coal terminal operated by CSX Transportation.

Residents have frequently raised the specter of coal dust-related health problems, with some claiming they could not open windows for years. Chris Heaney, an associate professor of environmental health and engineering at Johns Hopkins, led a study that utilized electron microscopy to examine the dark dust settling around the community. Heaney stated, as per WMAR2 News, "We were, as academic scientists, surprised to learn that there hadn't been a systematic investigation of this research question of the residents of a community that neighbor a large coal storage and export facility."

CSX has responded to these allegations, ensuring their coal-pier operations conform to stringent standards. Their statement relayed through WMAR2 News, claims, "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." Nonetheless, the community remains apprehensive, especially as the Maryland Department of the Environment weighs the renewal of the permit for the coal terminal.

It's not just the external dust that has residents worried. The community also fears for its health. "People were reporting to have lived with the accumulation of dark dust, on their properties on their homes, their playgrounds, schools, places of worship," Heaney explained, as detailed by CBS News Baltimore. The Curtis Bay community, galvanized by these revelations, has continued to pressure both CSX and state officials to address the issue of coal dust pollution before the December 16 deadline for public commentary on the state's granting of a new permit for the facility.

According to CBS News Baltimore, following a coal dust explosion in 2021, CSX settled a class action lawsuit for $1.75 million. The settlement also included mandatory corrective actions, such as implementing safety improvements and funding a community-led initiative for an energy-efficient environmental research center.