Air borne industrial emissions are medically well documented by the National Institute for Heath (NIH) as causing and/or exacerbating asthma and other pulmonary sickness and disease in humans.
Fort Howard residents recently experienced contamination from industrial emissions resulting from operations, less than a mile away, at Trade Point Atlantic. These emissions migrated via westerly winds over Old Road Bay then settled on adjacent Fort Howard community resident’s real and personal properties invading home interiors through attic soffits and other necessary ventilation apertures.
Prior Sparrows Point occupant Bethlehem Steel for decades notoriously released millions of tons of toxic particulates and poisonous compounds into the atmosphere surrounding Fort Howard, Maryland.
Attesting to Bethlehem Steel’s pollution practices, air borne industrial emissions migration has been memorialize by voluminous complaints filed at the Maryland Department of Environment.
Having this long history of negative impacts resulting from unmonitored and unchecked industrial polluting activities, at the request of the Fort Howard Community Association environmental vanguard Leah Kelly, Esq., of Washington, D.C. based Environmental Integrity Project, attended a recent April 21, 2018 Maryland Department of Environment hearing for Trade Point Atlantic tenant Access World LLC seeking MDE permit approval to expand grinding and open storage operations of potentially harmful commodities. Access World LLC currently operates a break-bulk commodities terminal at the New Cold Mill Building and Sparrows Point Shipyard Industrial Complex.
In response to the April 21, 2018 MDE permit hearing, on July 6, 2018 Ms. Leah Kelly Esq. submitted comments with exhibits “A” and “B‘ on the Maryland Department of the Environment (“MDE’s”) tentative determination to issue a Permit to Construct (“Draft Permit”) to Access World (USA), LLC for two 500 ton/hour crushing plants and four 200 ton/hour screening plants at 200 Shipyard Road, Sparrows Point, MD 21219, for a total of 1800 tons per hour. For scale, that is equivalent to 90 tri-axle dump-trucks loads per hour.
Fort Howard Community Association fully supports Ms. Kelly’s recommendations having the highest expectation Maryland Department of Environment will fully endorse Ms. Kelly’s recommendations as requirements for Access World, LLC permit approval thereby fulfilling its mission ” To protect and restore the environment for the health and well-being of all Marylanders.”
Additionally, Fort Howard Community Association is most appreciative of Ms. Kelly and Environmental Integrity Project’s leadership “investigating environmental problems and fighting for average people facing David-vs-Goliath odds against well-connected energy companies and other polluters.”
In light of the ongoing pollution concerns, Fort Howard Community Association is lobbying the Maryland Department of Environment and the United States Environmental Protection Agency for installation of air monitoring stations in Fort Howard, Maryland.
Any and all support to this end is welcomed. Please contact Fort Howard Community Association at 410-477-2040 or at [email protected]
Scott Pappas
President, FHCA
“It’s our community, let’s take care of it.”
