By: Ann Bristow, as told to the Maryland League of Conservation Voters Education Fund
The opinions shared in this piece are those of the speaker and/or the person being featured in the story. They do not necessarily reflect those of the Maryland League of Conservation Voters Education Fund.
In the far western corner of Maryland, the counties of Allegany and Garrett are shaped by a long history of coal, timber, and natural gas extraction.
Metski Coal Washing Facility. Image by Brent Walls (May 19, 2021).
Water Pollution
Streams run orange from acid mine drainage, especially in western Allegany and southern Garrett counties. Many of these waterways are permanently fouled, unsafe to drink from, or fish in. Frostburg, a city once built on coal, now pipes in water from outside its own watershed because local supplies are too contaminated to use.
Garrett County is split by the Eastern Continental Divide, separating the Chesapeake Bay watershed from the Gulf of Mexico watershed. Most of the county drains west, and because Maryland’s environmental attention focuses almost exclusively on protecting the Bay, western waters get little notice, funding, or enforcement.
Air Pollution
Air pollution is harder to see but just as dangerous. Allegany County has the highest rate of all cancers in Maryland, and ranks near the top for cardiovascular disease. These health problems have been linked to decades of coal combustion and surface and deep mining, industries that continue to threaten community members.
As an example, local officials recently supported transitioning the AES Warrior Run plant from coal to woody biomass, trading one highly polluting facility for another. Image by Brent Walls (November 6, 2023).
Economic Hardship, Limited Media Coverage, and Weak Enforcement of Environmental Laws
Both counties are classified as economically distressed by the Appalachian Regional Commission. Allegany County’s poverty rate is more than 40% above the state average. In Garrett County, tourism around Deep Creek Lake boosts some statistics, but that prosperity hasn’t spread. Affordable housing is scarce, and population decline has led to proposed school closures.
Ann Bristow, a public health advocate and member of the Mountain Maryland Movement, joined with other residents to raise awareness about the health and environmental challenges in the region. Together, they successfully pushed for a statewide fracking ban in 2017, focusing on water contamination, a more visible and tangible threat. But air pollution continues with little public pushback.
“Because it’s so poor out here, everything that is perceived as a money maker is jumped on, even if it’s at the expense of public health and the environment,” says Bristow.
A compounding factor in the region’s challenges is that there is minimal local media. One of Garrett County’s only newspapers was sold to a West Virginia company in 2017, and its news staff is now just two people. The nearest TV stations are based in Pittsburgh. The region is largely cut off from Maryland’s major media markets and policy conversations.
In addition, enforcement of environmental laws is weak. Garrett County, a largely rural area, has no county-wide zoning and slow police response times. Outside the town centers of Oakland and McHenry, response times from law enforcement can stretch to 30 minutes or more. Illegal dumping, burning, and land clearing often go unchecked.
“You’ve got this locked-off county,” Bristow says. “Not in the media market for D.C. or Annapolis, and two-thirds of Garrett County is not in the Chesapeake Bay protection zone—it gets ignored, and is really easily exploited.”
Climate Resiliency and Ongoing Battles
Severe flooding in Allegany County. Image by Charissa Bishop, left (May 13, 2025). https://wjla.com/news/local/severe-flooding-allegany-county-md-westernport-elementary-school-evacuation-maryland-georges-creek-elementary-emergency-alert-flood-floods-water-damage-deaths-injuries-sheriffs-office-mountain-ridge-high-school-westmar-middle-maryland-state-police Screenshot by Ann Bristow of Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries (May 13, 2025)
As the climate crisis worsens, these counties also face increased flood risk. In May, Georges Creek and Westernport, among the poorest parts of Allegany County, were severely impacted by rising waters and the overflow of raw sewage. FEMA denied this area disaster aid, leaving families and businesses to struggle on their own.
Threats to environmental and public health are ongoing. These counties are now facing a proposed Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link, which may go through protected Wildlands and other State forests, as well as residential and agricultural land. There is also a proposed repeal of Maryland’s fracking ban, along with the potential revival of coal extraction and timber harvesting projects, including facilities like AES Warrior Run and the Luke Paper Mill.
Environmental justice is not just a fight for a healthy environment, but for power in decision-making. In counties like Allegany and Garrett, the lack of representation for low-income communities means they rarely have a seat at the table when decisions are made about land use, energy, or infrastructure. As a result, they bear the brunt of industrial and extractive activity—and the health impacts that come with it.
Climate Resiliency and Ongoing Battles
Severe flooding in Allegany County. Image by Charissa Bishop (May 13, 2025).
As the climate crisis worsens, these counties also face increased flood risk. In May, Georges Creek and Westernport, among the poorest parts of Allegany County, were severely impacted by rising waters and the overflow of raw sewage. FEMA denied this area disaster aid, leaving families and businesses to struggle on their own.
The threats to environmental and public health are ongoing. These counties are now facing a proposed Mid-Atlantic Resiliency Link which may go through protected Wildlands and other State forests as well as residential and agricultural land. There is also a proposed repeal to Maryland’s fracking ban, along with the potential revival of coal extraction and timber harvesting projects, including facilities like AES Warrior Run and the Luke Paper Mill.
Environmental justice is not just a fight for a healthy environment, but for power in decision-making processes. In counties like Allegany and Garrett, the lack of representation for low-income communities means they rarely have a seat at the table when decisions are made about land use, energy, or infrastructure. As a result, they bear the brunt of industrial and extractive activity—and the health impacts that come with it.