November 22, 2018 — The town of Halton Hills, just outside Milton Ontario, has a very unique environmental study regulation, one that has been recently uncovered by Robert Bray, owner of Bray Auto Truck Recycling Inc.
The auto recycler has been operating his business without a licence from the municipality for the past 12 years. Now he is being ordered to pay a $5,000 fine plus a 25 percent victim surcharge for violating property standard bylaws that forbid him from using his property as an auto recycling facility.
The town is wanting a record submitted from Bray of the site conditions that identifies if there are any potential contamination within the property that could affect any of the other areas nearby.
“I haven’t had a business licence in 12 years because they won’t give me a licence,” Bray told the Independent Free Press. As a member of the Canadian auto recycling association, he explained that he is unable to provide the proper engineering reports that his facility is on.
According to Bray, the issue lies with the fact that there isn’t a professional engineer that will sign off on the study because of the lack of clear guidelines.
Managing director of the Auto Recyclers of Canada, Steve Fletcher, commented to the Independent Free Press about the situation stating that the towns policy is an “unadulterated nimbyism.”
Fletcher explained that the environmental study requirements the Town of Halton Hills has are completely unique to any other and are not seen anywhere in the world on that level.
For now, Bray has to start from square one, resubmitting his application for a business licence with the town.
