Coal dust has been found in measurable amounts on schools, playgrounds and houses nearly a mile away from a massive open-air coal terminal in Baltimore, raising public health questions as Maryland regulators mull a permit renewal for one of the nation’s largest coal-exporting facilities.
Scientists at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health released a report this week that confirms coal dust is present in the Curtis Bay neighborhood, offering a scientific answer to the community’s long-standing concerns about air pollution tied to mounting piles of coal being stored on the banks of the Patapsco River in South Baltimore.
Research has shown there are health effects from prolonged exposure to coal dust or soot — particulate matter — including increased rates of asthma.
Community activists and researchers have long raised concerns about a dearth of information in “fence-line communities” across the nation, those near coal export terminals and railways that ship coal to far-off markets and power plants.
