Foul environmental odours are common in Aotearoa New Zealand and at times they can make people sick. New research suggests environmental controls don't go far enough in protecting people's health.
In the latest Briefing for the Public Health Communication Centre, experts in public health and air quality found that prolonged odour pollution is a common problem in Aotearoa New Zealand and is likely to cause significant health impacts for those communities exposed to the smells.
Dr Jonathan Jarman, who led the research, says that odour pollution is often viewed as an annoyance for a small number of individuals rather than a hazard that can make communities unwell.
“We found the same themes when we went through the media reports of communities affected by odour pollution over the last 10 years. Things like prolonged stress, being unable to invite friends around, having to keep doors and windows closed in summer, and smells so bad that it made you want to vomit.”
“We identified 36 odour pollution incidents from one end of the country to the other, and there are likely to be more.”
Dr Jarman says that there is a lot of international research that links odour pollution to ill-health. Prolonged foul odours can cause symptoms that are like chemical poisoning such as headaches, nausea, vomiting, cough, loss of appetite, and insomnia.
In a case study from 2014, 13 people in Eltham Taranaki were reported with odour-related illness by their GPs after 3 million litres of buttermilk had been placed in an anaerobic digesting pond that had never worked.
Dr Jarman says environmental protection agencies need to be more aware about the effects of prolonged odour pollution on communities. “The symptoms are just like those caused by toxic chemicals. It is more than just a bad smell.”
The Briefing calls on industries to do more to control odours and to become good neighbours. Improved zoning is also suggested to keep odour sources away from where people live.
“Sadly it is clear that the current approaches under the Resource Management Act 1991 are not fully protecting communities from foul odours. We believe the National Public Health Service needs to do more to support these communities.”
“The health effects of prolonged foul odours are real, even if you can’t identify a chemical at toxic levels.”
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