Coal dust complaints

Residents' complaints and terminal inspection reports serve as evidence of coal dust impacts over time and are a starting point for tracing institutional responsiveness and/or negligence.

Complaints in the Public Record

Residents and business owners have made formal complaints about coal dust in the public record to government representatives since at least the 1970s. Complaints cover a range of impacts, including health concerns, expenses for added maintenance and coal dust removal costs, and the nuisance of needing to clean the dust incessantly.

We count least 20 independent complaints by residents before City Councils in Newport News and Norfolk since 2023 and many more submitted to the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VA DEQ) since the agency formed in 1990. Prior to that, there are at least four instances of formal complaints reported to the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board.

Terminal Inspections

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Documents

Air Pollution Control Board

• Air Pollution Control Board, Meeting minutes (Ms. Beverly Mann's comments), 1977–1987 (digitized)
• Complaint from Lambert's Point, received by the Air Pollution Control Board on June 9, 1992
• Complaint from Lambert's Point, received by the Air Pollution Control Board on January 6, 1993

VA DEQ, Submitted coal dust complaints,1990–2006

Newport News Planning Commission, Complaint during public comment, November 3, 2021

2021 Southeast Community Meeting - individual coal dust complaint

Newport News City Council, Complaints during public comment, 2023

Repair Lab, Wind Fence and Dome Report, August 2024