Achi news desk-
Eight months after a massive fire broke out at the American Iron and Metal site in Saint John, NB, the provincial government has introduced amendments to the Salvage Dealers Licensing Act designed to increase liability and reduce fire risks at salvage sites.
According to a news release from the province, the proposed reforms would:
- increasing the penalty for salvage dealers who breach licensing requirements under the act
- create a new ministerial authority to impose special conditions on a salvage dealer’s license and suspend a salvage dealer’s license without a hearing pending an investigation
- require a salvage dealer to have a fire safety plan and site plan when applying for a licence
“The Government has taken the findings of the AIM task force very seriously and the proposed amendments will place greater emphasis on compliance with the National Fire Code and help prevent a similar incident from happening in the future, while also strengthening the Department’s response Justice and Public Safety. if anyone,” Public Safety Minister Kris Austin said in the statement. “When we received the task force’s report in December, we immediately set about identifying options for strengthening accountability and fire safety. These improvements represent an improvement significant in both.”
The final report found, among other things, that the AIM fire released contaminants into the air and water in Saint John that will require significant additional testing.
