A late afternoon news release from the Sudbury health unit says the suspected "dust" event that occurred in the community of Falconbridge on October 30 has indicated that "No long-term health effects are expected," from the residual samples that were found.
October 30 was when several residents of Falconbridge reported to Glencore Integrated Nickel Operations and to Public Health Sudbury and Districts that a new dust event had occurred in the community.
Some residents reported finding "dust"on their properties and their vehicles, saying it was similar to the incident that occurred in that community overnight on Sept. 23 - 24, 2025, when a substance was emitted from the nearby Glencore smelter and dispersed over the community.
That September incident caused significant concern since the material presented itself as a dark substance that landed on vehicles, patio furniture, home siding, house windows, car windows and backyard gardens, among other things.
Responding to the October 30 incident, Glencore is on record that the company does not have indications that any dust was emitted from the smelter on that day.
Yonaniko (Iyo) Grenon, the senior communications specialist at Glencore INO said that operations at the smelter were curtailed on Thursday Oct. 30 "out of an abundance of caution".
Operations at the smelter were back up and running the next day, on Friday Oct. 31. Grenon said emissions monitoring was functioning accurately on the Thursday when citizens began reporting dust occurrences.
"None of our monitoring systems have registered any dusting, gas or emissions exceedances since the September dust incident," she said in a company statement.
On Friday Nov. 7, PHSD issued a news release saying the dust samples found might cause a "minor irritation" but added no long-term health effects were expected.
"Public Health Sudbury & Districts has received results from dust samples collected following the dust event that occurred in the residential area of Falconbridge on October 30," said the Nov. 7 release.
"Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP) and Glencore continue to investigate the source of the dust. Samples collected by MECP and Glencore contain metal sulphides and oxides (iron, nickel, and copper), aluminum, silica, and smaller amounts of other elements and compounds," the release continued.
"The health effects of these compounds depend on the route, length, and intensity of exposure. If inhaled or left on the skin, the dust could have caused temporary and minor irritation (for example, red eyes, sore throat, runny nose, or rash)."
"No long-term health effects are expected," said the health unit.
Given that the quantity of the dust was small and the dust is no longer being aerosolized and has been bound to soil or washed away, the risk of inhalation remains minimal, the release continued.
The release also quoted Dr. Emily Groot, Acting Associate Medical Officer of Health for Public Health Sudbury & Districts, as follows:
“Our top priority is protecting the health of the community. Similar to our response to the September 24 dust event, Public Health recommended safety measures while we investigated the incident. Based on what we know about the composition of the dust, these measures can now be safely lifted.”
The full text of the news release can be found on the PHSD website: