Hundreds register complaints about smells in St. Boniface

In under a year, 222 people registered complaints about foul odours on st.bsmell.ca, and the St. Boniface councillor couldn't be happier.

Coun.Matt Allard launched the websitein April 2015after hearing repeated complaints about the smell from constituents while he was campaigning during the Winnipeg civic election.

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• St. Boniface 'cocktail of unpleasant smells' a nuisance: Councillor

Allard said all complaints registered on the site are forwarded to Manitoba Conservation, which is the organization thatdeals with odour and other environmental complaints.

Prior to the website, which is a form people can fill in listing the time, date and location of the smell, and the suspected source of the smell, Allard said Conservation had no idea there was an issue.

"Manitoba Conservation was saying before, they essentially had no complaints on St. B. smell, and you know, being a resident of the areaand having campaigned extensively, this issue was at the door, so people were definitely aware of the issue. They just weren't sure where to send the complaint," Allardsaid.

Complaints in Old St. Boniface were primarily focused on the mushroom plant, while in Windsor Park they were about a rendering plant.

Sometimes the issue is a quick fix, such as the door of a rendering plant being left open. Other times it requires more mitigation to deal with the smell.

"These complaints are a tool for Manitoba Conservation to know where the hot spots are, and I think in the case of Loveday Mushrooms, there has recently been major capital upgrades that have mitigated the smell substantially," Allard said.

"And then long term, when it comes time to renew these environmentallicences, Conservation now has the tool to say,'You know, this environmental licence is really a big issue. There's been a whole lot of complaints, so what mitigating measures can be taken in terms of capital upgrades for this site?'" Allard said.

He also hopes to use the information gathered from the site to have a broader conversation about land use andindustrial development near residential areas.