Company said a smelter response team is going door-to-door to advise residents that a complaint was made and the health unit has provided advice
There have been complaints of another suspected "dust" event in the community of Falconbridge, which is part of the City of Greater Sudbury.
Residents living there, close to the Glencore Sudbury Integrated Nickel Operations (INO) smelter, advised the company that a dusty substance fell on their vehicles and properties close to the smelter, sometime early Thursday morning.
In response to the complaints, Sudbury.com contacted Glencore INO for comment.
The company responded that it was made aware on Thursday of new complaints of smelter dust.
Glencore senior communications specialist Yonaniko Grenon responded as follows:
"We have been made aware of new complaints of dust in the town of Falconbridge. The Smelter was operating under normal conditions throughout the day, as a precaution we have curtailed our operations.
"The Company has activated its Smelter Response Team and is conducting sampling. We are assessing whether this is related to our operations. The Ministry of the Environment Conservation and Parks is aware. We have also notified the City of Greater Sudbury and Public Health Sudbury and Districts.
"Our Community Line at 705-693-2761 (ext. 3989) remains open to support residents with any questions or concerns. Alternatively, residents can contact [email protected]," said the company.
In addition, Glencore said a response team was activated to canvas local neighbourhoods and keep residents up to date.
"Our Smelter Response Team is going door to door in Falconbridge to advise residents. In addition, a dedicated Falconbridge Information Line has been activated to support residents. The line will provide timely voice message updates to ensure residents receive real-time information as it becomes available. Falconbridge Information Line: 705 693 2761, Ext 3555," the company statement continued.
It was on Sept. 24 that a previous incident happened involving material that was dispersed by the smelter smokestack that landed on local properties, vehicles, patios, outdoor furniture and backyard gardens.
At that time, there was widespread concern about the material, but after several days of testing and analyzing, the company said the material had no long-lasting health effects.
The company held a public meeting earlier this month where company officials apologized for the Sept. 24 event and promised to improve communications with the community.
Also responding to the Thursday event was Public Health Sudbury and Districts.
"Today at approximately 11 a.m., Public Health Sudbury & Districts was notified of a dust event in the residential area of Falconbridge. Over the last few hours, Public Health has been working to assess the situation, including connecting with Glencore and the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.
"The investigation is ongoing at this time. In particular, the composition of the dust and where it originated, including whether it originated from Glencore's operations, is unknown. However, the early assessment is that there appears to be a much smaller volume of material that has landed in the community than the smelter dust discharge reported on September 24, 2025. Samples of the particulate matter have been collected for testing, with those results expected back in the next few days.
"As a precaution and until more is known about the composition of the dust, Public Health recommends that affected community members take steps to protect themselves:
Wash your hands with soap and water if you come in contact with the ambient dust. Use personal protective equipment such as gloves and masks when cleaning the dust from properties. Do not eat affected garden produce. Keep children and pets from playing in impacted areas. Cancel outdoor sporting events until further notice. Refrain from activities that may disturb the dust (for example, mowing the lawn). Turn off air exchangers and set furnaces to recirculate if it is an option until further notice.
Public Health will update these recommendations as more information becomes available.
At the same time, PHSD has added that since there is no obvious danger at this time, Halloween is still on for youngsters in Falconbridge. If there is any change, a public health spokesperson said the public will be advised.