2008 Univ of NE Swine Report- Validating the Odor Footprint

Trained participants monitored odors around a 4,800-head finishing site in eastern Nebraska during 2005 and 2006. Mobile odor assessors monitored odors within the downwind odor plume and reported that odors at off-site locations (at least 200 feet away) were consequentially annoying in 20 out of 192 assessments. On-site odor levels were considered annoying in 33 of 39 instances. For the same off-site locations and times, modeling predicted 18 annoying events, resulting in a 90% prediction rate (18 vs. 20) of annoyance frequency. Five residents regularly monitored for odors outside their residences and made 1,007 assessments. On 42 occasions, or 4.2% of the total, residents reported that annoying odor levels were present, equating to a 95.8% odor annoyance -free status. Predicted odor annoyance-free frequencies using the Odor Footprint Tool ranged from 90 to 99% for the five residences, given the locations of the residences and the live- stock production facilities in the area.