Achi news desk-
For the second straight day, a group of people from the neighborhood of Moncton, NB, gathered to protest the operation of a scrap metal recycling facility in their backyard.
About 30 people gathered at the end of Toombs Street to voice their concerns about the American Iron & Metal (AIM) recycling campaign in Moncton on Saturday morning.
About 30 people gathered on the corner of Mill Street and Toombs Street to voice their concerns about the AIM Recycling campaign in Moncton on Saturday morning. (Derek Haggett/CTV News)
The organiser, Monique Bernard, said she was concerned about environmental pollution and noise. The AIM facility in Moncton is next door to the Lewisville neighborhood.
The facility was purchased from State Tri in March 2023 and Bernard said the noise levels have increased dramatically since the new company took over the scrap yard.
“Our homes are shaking. We feel the jolts in our bodies,” said Bernard.
Department of Environment and Local Government (DELG) spokesman Geoffrey Downey said on Friday that AIM had a valid salvage dealer’s license and approval to operate.
“The Department of Justice and Public Safety and ELG are always ready and available to discuss any issues with stakeholders,” Downey said in an email. “Government officials continue to monitor the operation.”
In a statement released Friday, The City of Moncton said it recognizes the concerns residents have regarding the operation of a salvage yard on Toombs Street.
The city said AIM has authority to operate a salvage yard on the property.
“I think it’s a complete system failure on the city and on the provincial side,” said Bernard. “There are too many loopholes in the state guidelines for noise and the city has no official guidelines for allowable decibel levels.”
Bernard said the protests were directed more at the city and the province than at the recycling company.
“We know there’s a place on this earth for medical recycling, but it’s not in our backyards. And especially something as high-end as the AIM operation,” said Bernard.
Bernard said community members don’t necessarily want to see AIM Recycling close, but relocated to a non-residential area.
Local resident John Cormier feels the same way
He has said he has also noticed more noise and smells since AIM took over.
“We don’t want them to close, we want them to move to a place that’s zoned properly,” Cormier said. “This is a light industrial zone, not a heavy industrial zone. When it was Tri-State they had one crane. Now they have four. Four times the noise,” Cormier said.
The city says the property at the end of Toombs Street was operated as a salvage yard before it was rezoned from heavy industry to an industrial park.
Photo of the AIM Recycling Moncton facility taken on May 25, 2024. (Derek Haggett/ CTV News)
The current use has been grandfathered and is considered a legal nonconforming use, according to the city.
Elaine Aucoin, General Manager of Sustainable Growth and Development Services, said the city has been working closely with AIM and with the province to find ways to minimize the impact of the operation on residents in the neighbourhood.
“A number of actions have already been taken and others are underway, so we are hopeful that conditions will continue to improve as mitigation strategies are implemented,” Aucoin said.
The city’s statement went on to say that they have been working with AIM and the province to find ways to mitigate the impact the operation is having on residents living nearby including monitoring noise levels weekly.
Administrative staff met with AIM representatives in April and May and it was confirmed that a consultant had been hired to complete a noise mitigation study and that work was being done on noise mitigation measures.
According to the city, the Quebec company’s Approval to Operate was renewed by ELG and is valid until July 31 this year.
“Me, I’ve been in this neighborhood for 46 years,” Cormier said. “Never hear it this bad.”
CTV News has spoken to a number of neighborhood residents over the past year who have expressed their concerns about noise and bad smells coming from the AIM campaign in Moncton.
CTV News reached out to AIM for comment, but did not hear back.
