Environmental probe of emissions incident to take months

The Ministry of the Environment says it will likely take months to determine if ArcelorMittal Dofasco is to blame for the black grit that fell from the sky onto a north Hamilton neighbourhood on Monday and whether any  environmental charges would be laid.

Charges are rarely laid in similar fallout incidents, says the ministry.

The ministry is investigating the incident, which took place around 1:45 p.m. on Monday, by analyzing samples collected at the scene.

• Soot-like substance falls from the sky on to North Hamilton homes
• 'Ask questions' about emissions event: Environment Hamilton

ArcelorMittal Dofasco reported a 30-second "bleeder pop" took place in one of its blast furnaces at the same time as the fallout was reported by residents, but the company wouldn’t say definitively if their emissions incident caused the grit. It's currently conducting a root cause analysis to figure out what went wrong, spokeswoman Marie Verdun said in an email. 

Our main goal here is to address the incident and make sure that it doesn’t happen again, or it’s less likely to happen again- Geoffrey Knapper, Ministry of Environment district manager for Hamilton

Geoffrey Knapper, the Ministry of Environment's district manager for Hamilton, said it's "premature" to say whether or not environmental charges will be laid in connection with the incident.

"We get probably 15 to 20 complaints per year from the community about black fallout, or presumed black fallout events," Knapper said, noting not all of those events are confirmed.

Knapper said there haven't been very many charges laid in connection with those events.

Testing to determine the composition of the black grit that fell on Grenfell Street and surrounding areas on Monday is being conducted at a provincial lab and is expected to take as long as a month. The results, combined with meteorological data, will then be handed over to the Ministry of Environment's enforcement branch, Knapper said, which will determine if charges should be filed in conjunction with the province's lawyers should a link to the steel plant be found. 

The enforcement team will also take into account ArcelorMittal Dofasco's analysis of the incident. 

Knapper said its "standard practice" for the company to provide information to the ministry.

"Our main goal here is to address the incident and make sure that it doesn’t happen again, or it’s less likely to happen again," he said. 

The provincial review of what went wrong, Knapper said, is "tool" for both the ministry and the company itself.

Polluters should be punished: Environment Hamilton

ArcelorMittal Dofasco was fined $390,000 last year after pleading guilty to six of 13 environmental charges were laid against the company in 2013 in relation to its airborne emissions.

The steel company, which employs some 5,000 people in the city, is already exempt from some emissions regulations under a site-specific standard agreed to with the province.

Lynda Lukasik, Environment Hamilton's executive director, said if it’s proven the particulate emissions came from ArcelorMittal Dofasco, then the company should be punished.

"A financial slap on the wrist is not a bad thing to motivate a company," Lukasic said.

"If there isn't enforcement the problem doesn’t go away."

Ward 4 Coun. Sam Merulla, whose constituents are often the most affected by fallout, said Queen's Park needs to toughen its environmental regulations so it can properly punish companies for their emissions.

"It’s laughable to even say we have an enforcement branch of the Ministry of Environment," he said.

Jennifer Hall, a spokeswoman at the environment ministry, said it wasn't possible to say when charges may be laid in connection with Monday's emissions event, but said it's likely a longer process than people think.