Fire Code & Noise Violations and a Zoning 'Guru' Contact

I had a couple of conversations yesterday with Joe Luzi in bylaw enforcement and Glenn Misiurski (District Chief of Fire Prevention).

I spoke to Glenn about the Ontario Fire Code and what specifically applies to 96 Hyde and what doesn't. He was the fire guy at the meeting in October. He said that as far as he is concerned, the only two issues that currently are a concern are the open fires and the height of the cars. He said that a report has been made in October by himself and Captain Rick Lisinski, and that this yard has been put on notice and if we see any open fires to call 911 and report it. He said that if they are caught in the act of having an open fire, then they will be charged.

Same with the height of the stacked cars (no more than 3m). I asked him if we can videotape any violations and he said that he didn't see anything wrong with doing that if we are on our own property, but not to hold him to it as he is not a lawyer. He also said that charges are laid if the FIRE department catches them and rarely if ever from videotaped evidence.

I asked him about the height of the scrap heaps and he said that there is not a restriction on the height of those as they do not contain 'combustible material'. He said that this yard seems to be okay in terms of separating the combustible stuff. I brought up the previous violations, but he said that he can only speak on what is going on in the yard now, and he said that he has been down there recently and in terms of tire storage, storage and height of combustible material, they are fine. Also, because they are not considered a Tire Storage Yard (they don't keep enough tires around) the part about keeping 30 metres from vegetation would not apply.

As for noise. I asked Joe Luzi if anything can be done about general noise levels being out of hand. I asked if we would have to go through the bother of getting noise readings taken. He said absolutely NOT. He said that ANY time we are bothered by the noise/find it excessive to submit it on the logs. He said the problem with the previous logs we had filled out was that they were not specific enough in terms of what exact address was doing what act to create the noise. Now that I can see into both yards, that should not be a problem. He said that he didn't see anything wrong with videotaping it, as long as we are on our property.

Finally, I asked Joe if there is anybody that we can speak to about zoning/waiving grandfathering if we are not satisfied with the results we get from our meeting.
He said that there is a 'Zoning Guru' named Nick Britton at 416-394 2499. He said that this person is very familiar with this area and he would be able to answer all questions regarding zoning/grandfathering, and if grandfathering has been waived previously in the City and what it takes. I think he'll be getting a call.

Lighting/Enclusure/Ugliness Violating Property Standards?

I had an interesting discussion with Senior Environmental Officer Irena Cooley from the Ministry of The environment yesterday. She directed me to the following Property Standards section of the Municipal Code that deals with some of our issues.

Regarding the high powered light that shines in Sean's house: 629-17. Buffering. Property that, because of its use, occupancy or other reasons, creates a nuisance to other properties in the neighbourhood shall be buffered from these properties so as to minimize the effect of the nuisance by the provision and maintenance of: A barrier or deflectors to prevent lighting and vehicle headlights from shining directly into a dwelling unit;

Regarding having to look at ugly scrap all day: A visual screen or fence, of uniform construction and appropriate to the nature of the adjacent use, to minimize the visual impact of nuisances to persons at grade on adjacent properties

Regarding a barrier fence that is falling apart: 629-13 Enclosers: All fences, screens and other enclosures around or on a property shall be maintained in a structurally sound condition and plumb, unless specifically designed to be other than vertical, with a uniform construction, in good repair and free from hazards.

What This Type of Fire Can Do To Your Health

An excerpt from the link at right regarding what these fires do to your health states:

"Smoke from these kinds of blazes can cause the rubber in the tires and other products to leach sulfur dioxide into the air, ground and water.

Also believed present in all that thick black smoke - chemicals like xylenes, aldehydes, toluene and styrene.

Depending on the size and duration of the blaze, small particles with a carbon core are also sent wafting into the air and can easily be breathed deep into your lungs.

Below is information on a few of the chemicals mentioned above that are common in these fires

What are the main health hazards associated with breathing in xylene?
The main effect of inhaling xylene vapour is depression of the central nervous system (CNS), with symptoms such as headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting. Volunteers have tolerated 100 ppm, but higher concentrations become objectionable. Irritation of the nose and throat can occur at approximately 200 ppm after 3 to 5 minutes. Exposures estimated at 700 ppm have caused nausea and vomiting. Extremely high concentrations (approximately 10000 ppm) could cause incoordination, loss of consciousness, respiratory failure and death. In some cases, a potentially fatal accumulation of fluid in the lungs (pulmonary edema) may result. Symptoms of pulmonary edema, such as shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, may be delayed several hours after exposure. However, these effects are rarely seen since xylene is irritating and identifiable by odour at much lower concentrations. The only reported death resulted from exposure to xylenes (unspecified isomer composition and unknown concentration) in a confined space. Reversible liver and kidney damage has been reported in cases of severe xylene exposure. Results of short-term studies on human volunteers indicate that xylenes can cause neurobehavioural effects such as impaired short-term memory and reaction time (300 ppm xylene, with exercise) and alterations in body balance (65 to 400 ppm m-xylene). Exposure to 300 or 400 ppm xylene or 65 to 150 ppm p-xylene have not had similar effects. This variation in results is probably due to differences in the effects being studied, exposure conditions, development of tolerance and total xylene uptake (which increases during exercise).

Toluene

A clear, colourless liquid with a benzene-like odour. It is a FLAMMABLE LIQUID AND VAPOUR. The liquid can accumulate static charge by flow or agitation. The vapour is heavier than air and may spread long distances and distant ignition and flashback are possible. Liquid can float on water and may travel to distant locations and/or spread fire. Toluene can decompose at high temperatures forming toxic gases. Closed containers may rupture and explode in heat of fire. Toluene is harmful if inhaled or swallowed and is a central nervous system depressant. The vapour may cause headache, nausea, dizziness, drowsiness, confusion and incoordination. Toluene causes skin and eye irritation. It is an aspiration hazard and swallowing or vomiting of the liquid may result in aspiration into the lungs.

Where do you find toluene?
Toluene is used to make chemicals (e.g., benzene, toluene diisocyanate, benzoic acid), explosives, dyes and many other compounds. Used as a solvent for inks, paints, lacquers, resins, cleaners, glues and adhesives. Found in gasoline and aviation fuel.

Styrene
Styrene is classified as a possible human carcinogen by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Styrene is primarily a synthetic chemical that is used extensively in the manufacture of plastics, rubber, and resins. About 90,000 workers, including those who make boats, tubs, and showers, are potentially exposed to styrene. It is also known as vinylbenzene, ethenylbenzene, cinnamene, or phenylethylene. The following questions link to resources that provide safety and health information relevant to styrene.
Acute health effects of styrene are generally irritation of the skin, eyes, and the upper respiratory tract. Acute exposure also results in gastrointestinal effects. Chronic exposure affects the central nervous system showing symptoms such as depression, headache, fatigue, weakness, and can cause minor effects on kidney function.

I received an interesting email today

I received an interesting email today from Frances Reda .

"Good afternoon Sean:

Sorry for the delay in responding to your email. I have been advised that the zoning is attached to the property and not the owner. Therefore, a similar business could be started up in compliance with the zoning on the land.

I would like to advised you that a massive clean up of Hyde Ave occurred last week along the road allowance and in the ravine at the end of the street. There was one piece of evidence found and staff laid one charge. The remainder of the dumped material was renovation waste containing no evidence. The area officer will closely monitor this street over the next few weeks.

Fran

Fran Reda, EA
Councillor Di Giorgio
392-4065"

What more does By-Law Enforcement Need

If this image (captured the morning of the fire) doesn't illustrate that the scrap at this yard is piled higher than the fencing then I don't know what does. That flimsy fencing in the front is 10 feet high!...I'd say the scrap is at least 30. No, no violations here at all. Sure

Looks Like It's Up To Us

I live at 109 Westbury Crescent and have lived here for 40 years. In the last few years, the scrap yard behind our house has become increasingly annoying to the neighbourhood. More than just an annoyance, it has become dangerous to the community. Waking up to explosions on August 24th was the last straw for many of us.

Sean Kloosterman at 81 Westbury Crescent has outlined the resident's efforts to remove the scrap yard from our neighbourhood. Only to be told that the scrap yard has a right to exist at their present location. We have since learned that there are now 2 scrap yards operating on Hyde Avenue! One at 75 Hyde Avenue - Waxman Recycling has been here for 50 years and recently sold 96 Hyde Avenue to GB Scrap metal Ltd. Even though the two scrap yards at 96 and 75 Hyde Avenue have been disregarding the noise bylaws and fire code bylaws for years, they are still able to operate, annoy and pollute...and apparently multiply.

I was told to fill out noise logs for a 3 week period (along with 2 neighbours) so I did so EVERY DAY that I heard noise before 7AM. I submitted them to Enforcement Officer Bryan McGuire in late October. Mr. McGuire called me to inform me that they could not charge either scrap yard as I could not document which exact scrapyard was operating and what the exact noise was that I was hearing. Ugh.

He told me that they have been visiting the area the last few weeks and have warned the scrap yards that they will be charged if they operate before 7AM. At least it has been quiet before 7AM for the first time in years. I have since distributed flyers to local residents with the following information to log complaints. We were told be the supervisors that they would send investigators out to check on these yards each time they received a complaint...we'll see:

Noise Violations: Joe Luzi - Supervisor Licensing & Standards 416-394-8575 or Email: jluzi@toronto.ca
Fire violations : Glenn Misiurski - District Chief of Fire Prevention 416-338-9450
or Email: GMISI@toronto.ca

I've just received fire reports from the City of Toronto since 2000 for 96 Hyde and I am awaiting information from the Province regarding previous environmental violations/fines. I'll include this information in future posts.

Toronto Fire Services Follow Up and Third Party Mediators

Today I received a call from someone named George (he didn't give a last name) from Toronto fire services. He assured me that Captain Rick Lisinski had investigated my complaints and there were no fire code violations at the scrap yard. Later on in the day I was walking in my back yard with my dogs and noticed a great deal of smoke and an open fire in the scrap yard. Fortunately I had my camera. I snapped off a couple of pictures capturing the cars stacked high above the fence (which is around 10 feet high already). After collecting some photos I called Captain Rick Lisinski directly at (416)338-9463 and spoke with him. He assured me that the cars were not stacked any higher than two high today as he had paid a visit to the scrap yard. I am unsure which yard he visited but I have never persoanlly witnesed cars stacked that low. I have also noted a pile of scrap that is about 30 feet high, sometimes with cars piled at the very top. Who knows what kind of materials make up this pile.

I sent the following email to Captain Rick Lisinski:

"Dear Captain Lisinski

As a follow up to my complaints regarding operations in the scrap yard on 96 Hyde Ave. I would like to include this photo taken from my back yard at approximately 4:00 on the afternoon of November 1, 2006. As is clearly visible there are cars stacked above the fence line and an open fire can be observed in the yard.

Regards,

Sean Kloosterman"

and I attached the following picture to the email (Sadly the blog upload isn't as nice as the one I sent, I had to use a zoom of the photo I sent in to clearly show the fire on the blog, the cars have been cut out of the picture below)



This is another picture which I did not send that gives an overview of a typical day at the scrap yard, I include it to show the cars stacked higher than the 10 foot high fence:



I also received a call from a third party mediator person today who asked me about wht complaints I had regarding the scrap yard so I rattled off my grocery list of complaints and she told me that she would get back to me.

-Sean Kloosterman