NEWPORT, Ky. — More charges are on the way against a scrap metal company in Newport.
According to Campbell County Attorney Steve Franzen, two additional charges are being filed against River Metals Recycling for violating the city’s noise vibration code. Four charges were filed against the company for the same offense in December 2021.
The charges stem from “explosions” or combustion events that happen at the facility. The events can occur when an item being shredded, like a car, contains combustible material like gasoline.
Neighbors have long complained that the explosions rock their homes and pollute the air.
“River Metals Recycling has failed to follow the very first step of the process which is to remove flammable material before they inflow into their shredder," said Annette Kitchen, who lives in the Clifton neighborhood of Newport. "This then creates a combustion event which then impacts the residents' homes by having the home shake, the ground shakes, items fall off the walls, we have noise, we have a smell, then an interesting color cloud that cascades over the city of Newport."
The company, which is located along the Licking River, dismantles, demolishes, crushes and recycles metal items.
“You could be sleeping, you could have house guests over (and an explosion happens.) It’s very embarrassing, to be honest," Kitchen said. "You don’t have the ability to enjoy your home like other residents do. The physical and the property damage speaks for itself. The human effect, the anxiety, the stress, the lack of concentration is a concern."
RELATED | Newport files complaint against recycling company over explosions
Attorneys met Monday for a pretrial hearing on the case. However, that hearing was continued until May 26 in order to consolidate the new charges.
According to the original complaint, violations occurred on Jan. 22, Feb. 18, March 15 and Dec. 15, 2021.
Data obtained by WCPO shows combustion events violated city code again on Jan. 4, Jan. 20, twice on March 10 and on March 19, 2022. It is unclear which dates the new charges will stem from.
In total, the city has confirmed that at least 10 combustion events have happened so far in 2022. In 2021, the number topped 50.
In a statement, Neal Courladot, Regional Manager for River Metals Recycling, said the company “will vigorously defend against all such claims.”
"Being a good corporate citizen and responsible neighbor has been essential to how River Metals Recycling has done business in Newport for decades," Courladot said. "We continue to share the commitment of the Mayor and the rest of our city’s leadership, on behalf of its residents, to ensure that Newport remains a great place to live and work.”
Courladot said a sound barrier installed in September 2021 at the cost of $300,000 has “been effective in significantly reducing noise from the infrequent combustion events at our Newport facility.”
Kitchen disagreed.
“That design has completely failed," she said. "They are now more intense, more severe and we’re at a loss."
Neighbors, including Kitchen, have been working to find a solution to the issue for years. She believes the court case is a positive step.
“Our city has been trying their best to work with us residents and also with River Metals," Kitchen said. "It’s a very difficult situation but one that can be resolved if River Metals would actually do what they say to be a good neighbor."
She believes a resolution is possible.
“The explosions have to stop first and foremost. That is the very first step in their operations," Kitchen said. "If they cannot get the explosions to stop, then we need to move to the second part, now that the wall design has failed, we need to look at either an enclosure or they need to relocate to barren land that is not in proximity of our homes."
River Metals Recycling has operated in Newport for decades. It’s an affiliate of the steel production company Nucor, which recently received millions in state tax incentives to expand a steel plant in Gallatin County. More than a dozen RMR sites operate across Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, West Virginia, Alabama, Tennessee and Illinois.
Read the full statement from River Metals Recycling Regional Manager Neal Coulardot here:
“River Metals Recycling entered a plea of not guilty at today’s arraignment regarding the City of Newport’s alleged violations of its Zoning Code and will vigorously defend against all such claims. We worked closely last year with the Mayor, Board of Commissioners and City Administration to reduce the noise impact of our operations and infrequent combustion events. In September 2021, we completed the construction and installation of a state-of-the-art sound barrier, in consultation with nationally recognized acoustic engineering experts, at a cost of over $300,000. The new sound barrier has been effective in significantly reducing noise from the infrequent combustion events at our Newport facility.
Recycling scrap metal into new steel products is the primary production method used to make steel in the United States. This production process has much lower greenhouse gas emissions than the traditional blast furnace steel production making the U.S. the cleanest place in the world to produce steel. River Metals Recycling, Kentucky’s largest metal recycler, is extremely proud to be a part of the sustainable steel supply chain. We will continue to adhere to the most stringent and leading-edge standards in safety, environmental stewardship and regulatory oversight and continue to be proactive in examining and refining our recycling practices.
Being a good corporate citizen and responsible neighbor has been essential to how River Metals Recycling has done business in Newport for decades. We continue to share the commitment of the Mayor and the rest of our city’s leadership, on behalf of its residents, to ensure that Newport remains a great place to live and work.
River Metals Recycling looks forward to continuing operations in our current location, in an industrial zone within the City of Newport, for years to come. We also look forward to continuing to work closely with the Board of Commissioners, the City Administration and the neighbors in our community.”
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