Anti-Coal Dust Activism Outside of Hampton Roads

East Coast

Baltimore, Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland has the second largest national coal exports, with over 7 million tons exported annually (only second to Norfolk, Virginia's 9 million). Like in Hampton Roads, people living near the coal terminals in Baltimore's Curtis Bay have higher rates of asthma compared to other areas. An explosion in 2021 at the facility brought increased attention to the issue. In July 2025, a John Hopkins study linked high instances of dust pollution to times when the wind is blowing across the terminal, or when bulldozers are active on the site. About a week later, the state of Maryland issued the terminal, which is owned by CSX, a new operating permit that required the operators to build a wind fence around the terminal to mitigate the coal dust.

Read more about the activism in Baltimore at: Baltimore, MD

Roda, Virginia

Roda, Virginia is a small town surrounded on three sides by nine mountaintop removal coal mines, and subject to heavy coal traffic. A study by North Carolina State University for the Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards and the Sierra Club found that the community of Roda contends with exposure to particulate matter containing coal dust at levels far above what is considered safe. In 2009, the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board heard this report, and voted unanimously to take steps to deal with coal dust in Roda.

West Coast

Oakland, California

In the early 2010s, developers planned to redevelop the Oakland Army Base as the Oakland Bulk & Oversized Terminal (OBOT). Though the new terminal initially promised to only transport low dust cargo, it emerged that the terminal had quietly agreed to ship millions of tons of coal per year. At first, the City of Oakland tried to prevent the coal by passing an ordinance and resolution banning coal handling at the proposed terminal. However, OBOT sued and won in federal district court. Later, the City tried to terminate OBOT's lease, and OBOT again sued and won, this time in Alameda County Superior Court. Despite these blows to the movement, activists have not given up and continue to be vocal in their opposition to the coal.

Read more about No Coal in Oakland and anti-coal activism in Oakland at: Oakland, CA

Richmond, California

As in Hampton Roads, the terminals in Richmond are very close to residential areas, causing chronic health issues. After years of community organizing, in 2020, the city of Richmond passed an ordinance phasing out the handling of coal and petcoke in the city over three years. After the ensuing legal battle with the three fossil fuel companies, the City of Richmond and the Levin-Richmond Terminal Corporation reached a settlement to phase out the handing of coal and pet-coke by 2026. Included in the settlement are new mitigation measures to contain some of the coal dust at the Levin Terminal. Open transport systems will be enclosed, wind fences will be erected, and a total of 140 new misting dust-suppressors will be installed. These measures are intended to protect local residents from fugitive dust emissions until coal and petcoke are phased out in 2026.

Midwest

Control of Emissions from Handling and Storing Bulk Materials. City of Chicago. January 25, 2019.

Oak Creek, Wisconsin

Oak Creek

[see 'Wind Fence' doc]

https://www.jsonline.com/story/communities/south/news/oak-creek/2019/02/13/we-energies-build-large-windscreen-combat-coal-dust-oak-creek/2856580002/

https://racinecountyeye.com/2020/01/24/oak-creek-neighbors-renew-coal-dust-concerns-after-fence-falls/

https://www.sierraclub.org/press-releases/2018/01/clean-power-coalition-demands-better-air-monitoring-we-energies

https://racinecountyeye.com/2019/09/25/public-notice-on-we-energies-oak-creek-plant-effective-october-2019/

We Energies. February 5, 2019.

Beyond the United States

• Coal Dust Management Plan, QR Network. February 22, 2010.