Baltimore Exposure Map
Documented Exposure Sites
| # | Facility | Area | Industry | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bethlehem Steel Sparrows Point | Sparrows Point / Dundalk | Integrated Steel | Critical |
| 2 | Bethlehem Steel Key Highway Shipyard | South Baltimore | Shipbuilding / Repair | Critical |
| 3 | Maryland Dry Dock Company | Baltimore Inner Harbor | Ship Repair | Critical |
| 4 | W.R. Grace & Co. (Curtis Bay) | Curtis Bay | Asbestos Products / Chemical | Critical |
| 5 | Baltimore Gas & Electric (Pratt Street / Wagner’s Point) | Baltimore / Curtis Bay | Power Generation | High |
| 6 | B&O Railroad Mt. Clare Shops | Southwest Baltimore | Railroad Maintenance | High |
| 7 | Koppers Industries (Baltimore Tar Works) | Curtis Bay | Chemical / Tar | High |
| 8 | Crown, Cork & Seal | Baltimore | Metal Can Manufacturing | Moderate |
Bethlehem Steel Sparrows Point: The World’s Largest Steel Mill
Bethlehem Steel’s Sparrows Point plant operated continuously from 1887 until its final closure in 2012, and at its mid-century peak employed 35,000 workers on a 3,100-acre peninsula southeast of Baltimore. The blast furnaces, coke ovens, rolling mills, and finishing lines were all insulated extensively with asbestos-containing materials — pipe lagging, boiler insulation, furnace linings, and fireproofing throughout the complex.
The adjacent Key Highway Shipyard built Liberty ships and naval vessels throughout World War II, adding shipbuilding exposure to the already hazardous steel environment. Workers at both facilities have been diagnosed with mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases at high rates for decades.
W.R. Grace’s Curtis Bay operation is particularly significant: Grace manufactured asbestos-containing construction products including Monokote fireproofing spray and Zonolite attic insulation. Grace settled asbestos claims through a bankruptcy trust that remains available to eligible claimants.
Yes — Sparrows Point is one of the most documented asbestos exposure sites in American industrial history. Pipe fitters, boilermakers, insulators, and maintenance workers throughout the blast furnace and coke oven divisions worked daily with asbestos insulation from the 1920s through the 1970s. Maryland’s 3-year statute of limitations (Md. Code Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-101) runs from the date of mesothelioma diagnosis under the discovery rule.