Odor at Western Sugar Prompts DEQ Investigation
Written by Andrew-Rossi on May 22, 2017
A bad odor in the air in Lovell has prompted a DEQ investigation.
More than a dozen people have complained to the state Department of Environmental Quality about an acrid odor coming from the settling ponds next to the Western Sugar plant in Lovell, according to an article in the Lovell Chronicle. The ponds are a holding area for water discharged from the plant at the end of beet processing.
However, the article notes that DEQ’s measurements have not yielded a high enough reading to issue a violation to the plant, although complaints would indicate that the odor is much stronger than normal for this time of the year. Contributing factors to the odor are listed as weather conditions, like the wind, along with a high volume of water and an increased amount of solids like mud and beet pulp due to the high harvest yield this year.
The DEQ is meeting with the plant on a weekly basis to find a solution to the problem.
