The Ministry of Environment says there is no reason to be concerned about recent odours in Rossland and Fruitvale, which are believed to have emanated from the Zelstoff Celgar Mill in Castlegar.
"MOE has not received any complaints since Monday (Jan. 21), we cannot confirm the source of the odour, and we do not believe that it represented any risk to the public," said a Ministry of Environment press release.
Ministry staff in the field in Trail did notice the odours in the area, but could not confirm the source. The release stated the stench may have been from reduced sulphur gases originating at Celgar.
"The weather conditions have been highly unusual, with an intense inversion and valley winds," The statement said. "Under these conditions, odours (which are detectable at very low concentrations) can linger for a long time, and travel long distances. Regardless of the source, we have no reason to believe that anything unusual happened at any of the industrial facilities in the region; what was unusual was the weather pattern. The gases which create these odours are detectable at very low concentrations, and do not pose a risk to human or environmental health."