Property near the Trent River in north Trenton that has been a graveyard for junked vehicles and all kinds of scrap metal has a new lease on life.
A family from China, the Chus and partners, have bought the former Karten Metals property and are working on a huge $10 million cleanup and expansion project.
When complete, there will be two huge buildings and all kinds of metal will be accepted and shredded, crushed, turned into pellets, and sold worldwide.
The buildings will be set on thick concrete pads and all of the dismantling and crushing of metal will be done inside.
Project consultant Arnold MacLauchlan says any waste created from the process, including any liquid, will be contained on site and will be unable to leave the property potentially polluting Trent River.
The Ministry of Environment has been closely involved with the project.
It’s expected the concrete will be poured and the buildings constructed within the next 5 or 6 months.
Wenxing Chu and his son Aaron speak at the groundbreaking ceremony. (Photo: John Spitters/Quinte News)
Huge pieces of very expensive specialized equipment will begin to arrive from Italy within the next month.
What will be known as Trenton Salvage will be up and running some time next year and will employ around 50 people.
Clean up expansion work continues to get set for the state of the art metal shredding/crushing operation. (Photo: John Spitters/Quinte News)
At a groundbreaking today (Friday) Quinte West Mayor Jim Harrison welcomed the Chu family, many of whom were in attendance, and praised them for the way the cleanup job was being done.
“It’s crucial we don’t harm the Trent River and the Chu family are handling this exactly the right way,” said the Mayor.
Speaking for the family Wenxing Chu said they were excited to be a part of Quinte West and looked forward to getting involved in the community as much as possible.
(Photo: John Spitters/Quinte News)
Trenton Salvage will be the most modern operation of its kind between Montreal and Hamilton.
The Chus are also involved in the ownership of Sidney Auto Wreckers in Trenton and Harrison’s Auto Wreckers in Prince Edward County.
(Photo: John Spitters/Quinte News)
