Judge dumps Ambrosi's appeal
The owner of a Kamloops landfill who was in 2010 convicted of a number of environmental charges has had his appeal tossed by a B.C. Supreme Court judge — leaving him on the hook for more than $50,000.
Daniel Ambrosi, who owns the Owl Road landfill in Valleyview, was convicted of two charges under the Environmental Management Act, which arose after a fire at the dump in 2007.
Last March, Ambrosi and his company — Valleyview Enterprises Ltd. — were sentenced and ordered to pay $22,500 in fines and $31,394.11 in restitution to the City of Kamloops.
Ambrosi appealed the convictions and sentence on eight separate grounds — claiming his trial was unfair, the charges were unwarranted and the sentencing judge didn't have jurisdiction to order the hefty restitution, among others.
But, in a decision released today (March 22), B.C. Supreme Court Justice David Harris dismissed each of Ambrosi's allegations, saying the landfill owner has no grounds on which to appeal his conviction or sentence.
The charges on which Ambrosi was convicted relate to his failure to properly maintain the material stored at the Owl Road landfill and a number of annual reports he failed to submit to the government.
He was also acquitted on a single count alleging the landfill did not have adequate fire-prevention measures in place.
The restitution order covers the city's firefighting costs for the June 2007 fire, which burned for more than a day and left a toxic black cloud above the landfill.
When he was sentenced last year, Ambrosi was given until March 30, 2012, to pay the restitution and fines.
COMMENTS
Let's keep comments:
We ask that all participants own their words by logging in with their Facebook account. It's a simple process that will take seconds and helps keep our comments free of trolls, cranks, and “drive-by” commenters.
We reserve the right to remove comments from anyone using screen names, pseudonyms or false identities. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.