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A company has been fined $35,000 in the aftermath of the infamous demolition-gone-wrong that blanketed a Sherman Avenue North neighbourhood in a giant black dust cloud in 2019.
Delsan-AIM Environmental Services Inc. pleaded guilty Thursday to a single charge under the Environmental Protection Act related to the messy demolition of a 37-metre-high melt shop at the former Hamilton Specialty Bar.
The demolition company, an arm of parent company American Iron and Metal, originally faced three charges laid in January, but court records show two were withdrawn.
The fine may not be a “substantial penalty” for a large company, said Ward 3 Coun. Nrinder Nann, but she argued it still “sends a message” to industrial operators to respect the health and safety of their neighbours. “Intentional or not, these (environmental) actions have a lasting impact on residents,” she said.
Homes and businesses were covered in a fog of mystery dust after the controlled collapse of the old Specialty Bar building in September 2019, spurring resident heath concerns and provincial testing.
Hamilton’s public health department found only “trace” amounts of human health carcinogens like dioxins and furans, and suggested long-term health impacts would be “unlikely” as a result of exposure to the dust plume.
The Spectator was unable to reach Delsan-AIM or its environment director Ann Marcotte Friday.
But Marcotte previously told residents at a public meeting the company suspected dust “sandwiched between” panels on the upper part of the tower was released when it came down. She said Delsan-AIM would in future keep more water trucks and “misting” machines on hand for controlled demolitions near residential areas.
In most cases, provincial environmental fines go to the municipality where the offence took place.
Nann said she is hoping those fines can be allocated in a way that benefits “the neighbourhood and residents directly affected.” The city has done so in the past, for example in allocating $390,000 in steelmaker pollution fines in 2014 for tree-planting in the lower city.
The councillor is also waiting on a pandemic-delayed staff update on her proposal to have building and public health officials work together in future to review dust mitigation plans for higher-risk demolitions.
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