Residents say the material coats pets, homes and playgrounds while state officials review open complaints.
PONCA CITY, OK — A fine black dust has spread across parts of Ponca City, reviving pollution fears in a northern Oklahoma community where residents say homes, cars, pets and children’s play areas have been coated by the material.
The complaints have renewed attention on Continental Carbon Company, a plant south of town that has produced carbon black since 1954. Residents and former workers say the dust resembles carbon black, a powdery material used in tires. State officials say they have not confirmed the source. Ponca City Mayor Kelsey Wagner said the city and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality are working on monitoring plans and that investigators will let science guide the response.
Linda and Travis Kirby said they first noticed the material on their pets after the animals came inside covered in black debris. Linda Kirby said it was not dirt and looked like coal. The couple later saw similar material around their home and at places where their granddaughter plays. Travis Kirby said some residents did not know what the dust was at first, but he believed he recognized it. Complaints filed with the state over the past two years also described black dust on homes, buildings, cars and animals. One complaint said Continental Carbon was generating fugitive dust affecting nearby properties. Another described thick black smoke coming from the facility. Continental Carbon did not respond to repeated requests for comment from KOCO.
Carla Moulton, a Ponca Tribe citizen who has lived in Ponca City for decades, filed a complaint with the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality in 2024 after she saw black soot on her dogs’ paws and on a detached metal garage. Moulton said the issue reminded her of pollution fights from the early 2000s. Her complaint was closed after four days. She said investigators told her they did not find soot, then asked her to send photos. Moulton said she sent images of her dogs’ paws and did not hear more until contacted by a reporter. State records reviewed by KOCO show nearly two dozen complaints were filed with the department over two years. The agency has closed some cases after investigators said they did not see dust leaving the plant during visits.
The concern in Ponca City is tied to a long industrial history. The city has about 24,000 residents and sits near several industrial sites, including the Ponca City Refinery and the Continental Carbon plant. In 2005, the Ponca Tribe and the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers Union filed a lawsuit against Continental Carbon, accusing the company of violating the Clean Water Act by polluting groundwater and contaminating a marsh near the Arkansas River. The company denied that the plaintiffs had shown injuries tied to the plant and later agreed to a groundwater monitoring plan. In 2009, members of the Ponca Tribe and nearby landowners received a $10.5 million settlement from Continental Carbon after claims of pollution and health concerns.
Former Continental Carbon workers said they remember when the plant changed. Marvin McCune, Ray Chodrick, David Mallory and Travis Kirby worked at the facility for years and were members of the local union. In 2001, 86 union members were locked out after the company and union failed to reach a new contract. Mallory said the plant had operated properly for decades before he believed management problems began. The former workers said they saw black material leave the plant and spread through the area. Chodrick said a small container of carbon black could cover a floor and much of a house. Trees outside the facility are stained black, and a sign at a south Ponca City convenience store says customers may not enter with carbon black shoes.
Residents also raised health concerns, though no findings have connected local illnesses to Continental Carbon. Moulton said her husband had esophageal cancer and that she had lung cancer in 2023. Travis Kirby said two of 10 people he worked with have died of cancer. Suzanne Boettcher, who has lived in Ponca City for 55 years, said her late husband, Fred Boettcher, helped fight pollution in town in the early 2000s and later had several cancers. She said she has been diagnosed with brain cancer. The Oklahoma State Department of Health does not track cancer clusters, and KOCO found no studies tying health problems in Ponca City to local industries. Residents said they still want officials to take their reports seriously.
Records show the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality has active and closed cases tied to the dust complaints. The agency confirmed 11 active investigations into black dust in Ponca City. Most are concentrated east of 3rd Street and south of Prospect Avenue, an area about five miles from Continental Carbon. KOCO reported that one 2024 investigation found Continental Carbon failed to control fugitive dust from the facility and that the department observed emissions of 60% opacity. The agency opened an enforcement case to address the violations listed in that complaint. A property owner who also owns an RV park along the Arkansas River has filed a lawsuit against Continental Carbon, claiming the business was harmed by carbon black released from the facility and carried onto the property.
Ponca City commissioners and the Ponca Tribe passed a joint resolution in February seeking to find the source of the black dust. A Continental Carbon representative attended the meeting but did not comment. Wagner said senior staff in the state agency’s air quality division are working on strategic monitoring solutions. She said there is no confirmed evidence linking the dust to a specific source and that the city will act when facts support action. Linda Kirby said residents have shared photos of black material on outdoor furniture and pets. “We need help,” she said. “We need to know what direction to go and to get this resolved for this community.”
State investigators have not announced a final finding on the source of the dust. Residents say the material continues to appear, and the next milestone is the outcome of the open state investigations and any action tied to the pending enforcement case.
Author note: Last updated May 16, 2026.