Residents of East Vancouver have been enduring a strong and unpleasant smell this summer, likened to garbage and sewage by locals. Metro Vancouver has identified several potential sources in the vicinity, including a poultry processing plant, two seafood processors, and West Coast Reduction Ltd., a significant rendering plant. Some residents have resorted to burning incense at home or changing their walking routes to avoid the odor. Complaints about the stench have nearly doubled this year, with 883 odor complaints recorded by Metro Vancouver for the area north of Broadway, compared to an average of 456 annually over the past five years. West Coast Reduction is suspected to be the cause of 357 of this year’s complaints.
The rendering facility in East Vancouver, the only one of its kind in British Columbia, processes food waste and animal byproducts such as meat and bones from various sources. Ken Ingram, the director of technical and environmental services at West Coast Reduction, emphasizes that nothing goes to waste in their operations. The odors produced during the process are treated before being released, using methods like incineration and chlorine solutions to control and eliminate the smell.
Despite these measures, the smell continues to affect surrounding areas, sometimes spreading to other parts of the city. An online platform called Smell Vancouver allows residents to report different odors across the city, with a significant increase in user engagement this year. While East Vancouver remains a prevalent area for odor reports, other sources like construction, garbage collection, sewage, and algae blooms should also be considered.
West Coast Reduction takes complaints seriously and uses a weather station to monitor conditions when addressing odor concerns. Metro Vancouver’s environmental regulation and enforcement staff investigate each complaint, although pinpointing the exact source of the odor can be challenging due to changing air conditions.
