Two scrap metal dealers have run afoul of the District of Maple Ridge’s scrap metal bylaw.
Still before the courts is M. Salo and Sons Recycling Ltd., located in the Albion industrial park. Owner Michael Salo and his company Fraser Valley Metal Exchange are facing two counts under the bylaw for failing to register metal that was on site.
Liz Holitzki, director of licences, permits and bylaws, said the recycler was caught in a routine police check, and is accused of having metal wire on site which did not match the business records.
Salo faces a fine ranging from $1,000 to $10,000. The charges have not yet been proven in court.
Mike Salo has twice been given adjournments in order to allow his lawyer time to review his case.
He first appeared in January, but the matter is now set for trial on Nov. 5.
In a separate case, CAC Metal Recycling, located on Wharf Street, also ran afoul of the district’s bylaw. The business had metal beer kegs which had not been logged in the business records.
They were caught during a routine check by the bylaws officers.
Holitzki said CAC pleaded guilty, and was fined the minimum $1,000. She is pleased with the company’s response to the court action.
“It has certainly made a big difference in CAC, in the way they do business,” she said.
Scrap metal dealers have faced new regulations in recent years, aimed at curbing a black market for wire, car parts, sewer grates and other stolen metal.
Under provincial law, scrap dealers must require valid ID from sellers and share purchase details with police. Also, they can no longer pay cash for scrap for amounts above $50, and must now pay by cheque instead.
The district’s more stringent bylaw requires dealers to record the ID of those who bring in scrap metal, hold on to goods for a week before reselling them, and to notify police daily of metal purchased.
In 2010, 911 emergency service was cut off to more than 500 residents in east Maple Ridge after thieves stole copper telephone lines along 272nd Street. Earlier that year, three commemorative bronze plaques on the Pitt River Bridge, weighing more than 600 pounds combined, were stolen and later turned up at a scrap metal dealer, cut into more than 30 pieces. In September 2010, more than $13,000 of copper wiring was stripped from a closed down sawmill on River Road.
According to Telus, the new regulations are making a difference. The company had 241 incidents of cable being stolen in June of 2012, but that dropped to 12 in July and one in August, after provincial regulations came into effect.