Researchers monitored air quality and used cameras to track coal-handling activity from July 2022 to July 2023. The results showed sharp increases in black carbon and fine particulate matter when coal was being pushed or when winds carried dust from the site into residential areas.<\/p>\n
For many Curtis Bay residents, the findings confirmed long-standing concerns about the environmental and health impacts of living near the coal terminal.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis new scientific evidence is not a revelation to the people who live here \u2014 it is validation,\u201d the Community of Curtis Bay Association said in a statement to The Baltimore Sun. \u201cValidation of the daily reality we\u2019ve described in testimony after testimony, in letters to officials, and in community meetings over many years. We have long sounded the alarm, and yet meaningful relief has never come.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2021, an explosion at the terminal covered homes in coal dust, sparking renewed outrage and prompting government investigations. Despite mitigation efforts, such as dust-suppressing water sprays and wind fences, researchers in the latest report found that these measures fall short.<\/p>\n
Residents said the issues run deeper than the blast.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is not a problem that began with the CSX coal explosion \u2014 though that human-made disaster further revealed the dangerous conditions the company has allowed,\u201d the association said. \u201cThis is a long-standing public health concern, one that our community has endured for far too long. It is a failure of corporate responsibility and of regulatory oversight, and it is far past time for meaningful action.\u201d<\/p>\n
CSX said in a statement to The Sun that its Curtis Bay coal pier operations meet or exceed federal and state environmental standards and that air quality in the area complies with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. Citing data from a collaborative investigation reviewed by independent experts, the company said levels of particulate matter are within national safety standards.<\/p>\n
\u201cCSX 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,\u201d the company said in the statement.<\/p>\n
The Curtis Bay community is urging the Maryland Department of the Environment to deny the renewal of CSX\u2019s operating permit, which is under review. Advocates say the agency has to act on both scientific findings and the lived experiences of Curtis Bay residents.<\/p>\n
MDE officials confirmed CSX’s last violation was in early September 2024 for dust emissions from track repair. An enforcement action in that case is pending, according to a spokesperson. The operating permit is also pending, the MDE said.<\/p>\n
Residents vowed to continue the fight against pollution.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe only path forward that our community finds acceptable is one that leads to a Curtis Bay free of coal dust,\u201d the community association said. \u201cPeriod.”<\/p>\n
Have a news tip? Contact Todd Karpovich at tkarpovich@baltsun.com<\/a> or on X as @ToddKarpovich<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A Johns Hopkins study confirms that coal-handling operations at CSX\u2019s Curtis Bay terminal are a major source of air pollution, validating long-standing health concerns from South Baltimore residents and prompting renewed calls for regulatory action.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":249,"featured_media":11027149,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-07-24T18:54:52Z","apple_news_api_id":"ea0b0655-4dfc-40ff-bf7e-d133164f0287","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-07-24T21:42:09Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/A6gsGVU38QP-_ftEzFk8Chw","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"middle","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"subheadline":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[88,89,83,84,85],"tags":[24457],"feature":[],"location":[359,223],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[22962],"class_list":["post-11575732","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-environment","category-health","category-latest-headlines","category-local-news","category-news","tag-social","location-baltimore","location-maryland"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"88","primary_tag":0,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"","print_title":"Curtis Bay residents demand action after coal pollution report","print_subheadline":"","print_priority":"","print_placement":"cover","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":"1753416000","print_slug":"TBS-L-CURTISBAYFOLO-0724","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"A Johns Hopkins study confirms that coal-handling operations at CSX\u2019s Curtis Bay terminal are a major source of air pollution, validating long-standing health concerns from South Baltimore residents and prompting renewed calls for regulatory action.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":"","print_content":" Residents of South Baltimore\u2019s Curtis Bay neighborhood are demanding action from corporations and regulators. A new Johns Hopkins University study links major air pollution in their community to daily operations at a CSX coal terminal.<\/p> The study<\/a>, released Monday by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, found that activities at the CSX Curtis Bay Piers terminal \u2014 particularly the movement of coal by bulldozers \u2014 are major contributors to spikes in air pollution.<\/p> Researchers monitored air quality and used cameras to track coal-handling activity from July 2022 to July 2023. The results showed sharp increases in black carbon and fine particulate matter when coal was being pushed or when winds carried dust from the site into residential areas.<\/p> For many Curtis Bay residents, the findings confirmed long-standing concerns about the environmental and health impacts of living near the coal terminal.<\/p> \u201cThis new scientific evidence is not a revelation to the people who live here \u2014 it is validation,\u201d the Community of Curtis Bay Association said in a statement to The Baltimore Sun. \u201cValidation of the daily reality we\u2019ve described in testimony after testimony, in letters to officials, and in community meetings over many years. We have long sounded the alarm, and yet meaningful relief has never come.\u201d<\/p> In 2021, an explosion at the terminal covered homes in coal dust, sparking renewed outrage and prompting government investigations. Despite mitigation efforts, such as dust-suppressing water sprays and wind fences, researchers in the latest report found that these measures fall short.<\/p> Residents said the issues run deeper than the blast.<\/p> \u201cThis is not a problem that began with the CSX coal explosion \u2014 though that human-made disaster further revealed the dangerous conditions the company has allowed,\u201d the association said. \u201cThis is a long-standing public health concern, one that our community has endured for far too long. It is a failure of corporate responsibility and of regulatory oversight, and it is far past time for meaningful action.\u201d<\/p> CSX said in a statement to The Sun that its Curtis Bay coal pier operations meet or exceed federal and state environmental standards and that air quality in the area complies with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines. Citing data from a collaborative investigation reviewed by independent experts, the company said levels of particulate matter are within national safety standards.<\/p> \u201cCSX 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,\u201d the company said in the statement.<\/p> The Curtis Bay community is urging the Maryland Department of the Environment to deny the renewal of CSX\u2019s operating permit, which is under review. Advocates say the agency has to act on both scientific findings and the lived experiences of Curtis Bay residents.<\/p> MDE officials confirmed CSX's last violation was in early September 2024 for dust emissions from track repair. An enforcement action in that case is pending, according to a spokesperson. The operating permit is also pending, the MDE said.<\/p> Residents vowed to continue the fight against pollution.<\/p> \u201cThe only path forward that our community finds acceptable is one that leads to a Curtis Bay free of coal dust,\u201d the community association said. \u201cPeriod.\"<\/p> Have a news tip? Contact Todd Karpovich at tkarpovich@baltsun.com<\/a> or on X as @ToddKarpovich<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>"},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1753393528","print_workflow_exported_username":"Andy Knobel","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":"24225","print_status":"24232","add_export_buttons":"","print_endpoint":"tribune"},"really_short_title":"","short_title":"","syndication_source":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"premium","featured_media_content":{"content_type":"image","content":{"id":11027149,"title":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST","filename":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2024\/12\/02\/curtis-bay-coal-dust-peer-reviewed-study\/tbs-l-coal-dust-3\/","alt":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","author":"36","description":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","caption":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood.","name":"tbs-l-coal-dust-3","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11027680,"date":1732735264000,"modified":1753393465000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"November 27, 2024","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"'You get tired of cleaning': Battle over Curtis Bay coal dust adds new chapter","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":3462231,"filesizeHumanReadable":"3 MB","context":"","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":169,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":576,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":""},"data":[{"id":11027149,"title":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST","filename":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2024\/12\/02\/curtis-bay-coal-dust-peer-reviewed-study\/tbs-l-coal-dust-3\/","alt":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","author":"36","description":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","caption":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood.","name":"tbs-l-coal-dust-3","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11027680,"date":1732735264000,"modified":1753393465000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"November 27, 2024","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"'You get tired of cleaning': Battle over Curtis Bay coal dust adds new chapter","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":3462231,"filesizeHumanReadable":"3 MB","context":"","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":169,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":576,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":""}],"rendered_content":"![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg\")
"},"attachments":[],"authors":[{"ID":23193,"display_name":"Todd Karpovich","description":"","first_name":"Todd","last_name":"Karpovich","user_nicename":"todd-karpovich","user_login":"todd-karpovich","user_email":"tkarpovich@baltsun.com","type":"guest-author","linked_account":0,"website":"","twitter":"toddkarpovich","facebook":"todd.karpovich","google_plus":""}],"taxonomies":{"category":[{"term_id":88,"name":"Environment","slug":"environment","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":88,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":85,"count":5347,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":89,"name":"Health","slug":"health","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":89,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":85,"count":25015,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":83,"name":"Latest Headlines","slug":"latest-headlines","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":83,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":72148,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":84,"name":"Local News","slug":"local-news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":84,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":10282,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":85,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":85,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[{"term_id":24457,"name":"social","slug":"social","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":24457,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":8115,"filter":"raw"}],"location":[{"term_id":359,"name":"Baltimore City","slug":"baltimore","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":359,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":223,"count":32674,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":223,"name":"Maryland","slug":"maryland","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":223,"taxonomy":"location","description":"","parent":0,"count":243539,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_array":{"id":11027149,"title":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST","filename":"TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2024\/12\/02\/curtis-bay-coal-dust-peer-reviewed-study\/tbs-l-coal-dust-3\/","alt":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","author":"36","description":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood. (Kevin Richardson\/Staff)","caption":"A recent Johns Hopkins study confirmed the presence of coal dust in Baltimore's Curtis Bay Industrial Area neighborhood.","name":"tbs-l-coal-dust-3","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11027680,"date":1732735264000,"modified":1753393465000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"November 27, 2024","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"'You get tired of cleaning': Battle over Curtis Bay coal dust adds new chapter","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":3462231,"filesizeHumanReadable":"3 MB","context":"","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":169,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":576,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg","height":1890,"width":3360,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":""},"syndication_canonical":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/24\/curtis-bay-residents-dust-pollution\/","apple_news_notices":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/24\/curtis-bay-residents-dust-pollution\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Curtis Bay residents demand action after coal pollution report","url":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/24\/curtis-bay-residents-dust-pollution\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/07\/24\/curtis-bay-residents-dust-pollution\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg?w=150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/TBS-L-COAL-DUST-P1-2.jpg"},"articleSection":"Other","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Todd Karpovich"}],"creator":["Todd Karpovich"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Baltimore Sun","logo":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/baltimore-sun-fallback.png?w=600"},"keywords":["social"],"dateCreated":"2025-07-24T10:49:54Z","datePublished":"2025-07-24T10:49:54Z","dateModified":"2025-07-24T21:44:36Z"},"rendered":"