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Coal Dust Report Reveals High Levels of Air Pollutants; Virginia Air Board Takes Action

Case Updates:

October 5, 2009

In response to Sierra Club and its allies’ actions, coal mining companies in Roda adopted dust control measures to reduce dust levels in the community. The companies began frequent truck washings, street sweeping and watering down the main road, which proved to be very effective. Sierra Club, Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, and community members were pleased to see the air quality improve so quickly, but were concerned that companies would not continue these practices if they remained voluntary. Sierra Club and its allies’ concerns were affirmed when, at a hearing in early September 2009, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) presented its own findings on coal dust levels, which showed significant improvement. Rather than reporting to the Board that dust control measures had improved the situation and taking steps to ensure that those control measures remained in place, the DEQ claimed that Sierra Club’s study was flawed and that there wasn’t a coal dust problem in Roda. Fortunately, the Virginia Air Board sided with Sierra Club and directed the DEQ to work with state mine regulators, companies and community representatives to continue to address coal dust problems in Roda. The DEQ will report its latest findings to the Virginia Air Board at a hearing in late November.

May 1, 2009

On April 24, 2009, Sierra Club and Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards (SAMS) achieved a major victory for the residents of Roda, Virginia and other coalfield communities.  In response to a comprehensive report assembled by the two groups to highlight the problem of dust generated by coal trucks, the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board directed the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to undertake its own investigation and to initiate actions to directly address dust issues in Roda.

The report included the results of a two-week air quality study, commissioned by Sierra Club and SAMS and conducted by North Carolina State University professor and scientist Viney Aneja, which sampled the air at two locations along Roda Road in August 2008. The study revealed that residents who live along Roda Road are consistently exposed to levels of particulate matter (essentially, dust) above the national health-based standard promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. One of the air samples, taken in front of the home of a 91-year-old woman, revealed particulate matter levels more than three times the national standard. Roda Road is used by several mining companies to access their operations, and the trucks track coal, mud and debris from the mines to the road, where it dries and turns to dust that is stirred up by other vehicles.

In response to the report and to a presentation of the data by Dr. Aneja, the Virginia Air Board directed the DEQ to conduct its own sampling and investigations in Roda and the surrounding communities, and to work with other state agencies, the community, and mining companies to reduce dust emissions immediately. The Virginia Air Board also directed the DEQ to send letters to the Center for Disease Control and the Virginia Department of Health to request a health assessment of residents in Roda and implications for the region, and to provide updates on their findings at each of the Air Board’s upcoming quarterly meetings.

Details and Documents: