An open air coal stockpile on the Portland waterfront will have to be covered and eventually removed under a new ordinance approved by the city council.
The measure is a victory for local activists concerned about dust pollution from the pile. Organizers collected enough signatures to put restrictions on coal storage on the Portland ballot this fall.
Todd Dana, owner of Asia West off Commercial Street, told Portland city councilors at a special meeting Monday that his art and furniture store and surrounding property are often covered in black dust from the 40,000-ton coal pile next door.
"While this coal pile may serve a specific industrial — albeit outdated — industrial purpose, I believe there must be a way to balance that with the basic right of neighboring property owners and residents to clean air and a safe environment," Dana said.
Sprague Energy maintains the coal stockpile at its Cassidy Point terminal on Portland's industrial waterfront.
The company argues it follows best practices to keep coal dust in check, by cleaning while coal is unloaded, preventing spills and spreading a crusting agent on the pile to mitigate wind blown dust. A Sprague spokesperson declined to comment on the record about operations at the facility.
Coal is transferred from Sprague's terminal to the Nine Dragons Paper Co. mill in Rumford, where it is burned to generate electricity and steam, according to Nine Dragons spokesperson Scott Reed. Coal accounts for about 6% of the mill's fuel needs, Reed added.
"There are technological limitations that require the use of some coal; therefore, eliminating the use of coal without an operationally viable alternative in place would have serious consequences for the mill," Reed said. "It could disrupt essential operations, affect employee livelihoods, and create challenges for the surrounding economy."
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection said there are no state or federal regulations that require covering open air coal piles. Regular air quality tests around the pile do not show dangerous levels of particulate pollution. according to the department.
But nearby residents and business owners have complained about fugitive emissions from the pile and argue coal dust can cause and worsen respiratory illnesses and other health problems and contaminate the environment.
West End Neighborhood Association President Kip DeSerres said the coal pile spreads tiny particulates that threatens people's health even far away from the facility.
"All of the West End neighborhood is within a mile of this facility so we are all at risk, there is every reason to believe that coal dust is drifting into our neighborhood," DeSerres said.
The ordinance requires any coal operations have to be conducted under a permanent covering by 2027. By 2030, it will be illegal to deliver, handle or store more than one ton of coal in the city.
Portland is home to one of the last remaining coal piles in New England, as the region has moved towards cleaner fuels.
Only two coal fired power plants remain in the region and both are in New Hampshire — Merrimack Station in Bow and Schiller Station in Portsmouth.
Granite Shore power, which owns the plants, agreed to stop firing the Schiller plant by the end of 2025 and shutter the Merrimack operation by 2028.
