June Monsen stroked the ever-growing belly. Soon there will be a boy and they will be a family of three. The pram has been purchased, but it should not be used for lounging outside the house. – I can’t leave him outside in the pram when he’s going to sleep, I don’t want him to lie in a chemical bath, she says. June Monsen lives north of IFF’s factory. On hot summer days, they can’t sit outside, she says. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news Two and a half years ago, she and her roommate bought a detached house on Vormedal in Karmøy. Along with the purchase, they got handsome neighbors and a lot of life, but gradually also what she describes as a chemical smell that became more and more intense. – We cannot vent. If I sleep with the window open, I wake up tired and heavy in the head, she says. Monsen is not the only one to react. From April to September, Karmøy municipality received several complaints in the same area. Most recognizable as cat poo Residents describe a bad smell and a burning sensation in the eyes. One of these is Nicholas Charalambous. When the wind blows from the north, what he describes smells like cat poo in the street. He says that some neighbors have moved away when the smell comes. Charalambous says he has two choices: – If you have the window open, pull it in. On hot days, you have to choose between sweating all over or having the house smell, he says. He also believes that the smell has become stronger this year. Nicholas Charalambous lives on the south side of IFF Norway. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news Residents believe the smell is coming from the IFF Norway factory. This is just across the road from June Monsen. Nicholas Charalambous lives on the opposite side of the factory. According to the municipality, the complainants live on several sides of the factory. At IFF Norge, alginate is produced from kelp. The kelp is harvested along the Norwegian coast, before being transported by ship to Vormedal. To prevent the kelp from rotting on the way, it is treated with Formalin. A highly harmful substance that can be used for disinfection and as a preservative, according to Store norske medical encyclopedia. Monsen believes it is this substance she breathes in. Encourage the neighbors to get in touch Factory manager Tor Arthur Halvorsen says that they take health and safety very seriously, both for the employees and the neighbours. Factory manager at IFF Norway, Tor Arthur Halvorsen. Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news He encourages those who smell the smell to get in touch. – If we get feedback that neighbors suspect that there is a bad smell coming from our factory, we investigate it straight away, he says and continues: – The only smell you can expect from the factory on a fine summer’s day is perhaps a little smell of kelp , but one should not think that it leads to this type of discomfort. We have people who work outside at the factory from time to time. They will certainly report every incident if there is an abnormal smell. He also specifies that, like all Norwegian factories, they are regulated by operating and discharge permits from the Norwegian Environment Agency. – It is defined what can be towed out. We carry out a measurement program to ensure that we comply with these limits, he says. Instead, the factory has another theory about what the neighbors smell. IFF Norge at Vormedal in Karmøy produces alginate from seaweed and kelp. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news There may be several sources of smell Karmøy municipality sent a letter to the factory in September asking for clarifications after all the complaints from the residents. In the IFF’s response, they write that they believe the smell originates from the municipality’s pumping system for sewage. This must have been a problem in the past, according to the letter. A lawyer in Karmøy municipality, Evy Helland, admits that at times there has been a smell from the treatment plant in the area, but that from March 2020 a number of measures have been taken. – Neighbors who have recently reported a smell in the area have said that it comes from IFF, but it is difficult for the municipality to establish exactly what smell they have smelled and where it is coming from, she says and encourages residents to get in touch as soon as they smell an unpleasant smell. IFF has permission to release 150 tonnes of formalin into the sea annually. In addition, they have permission to release up to a fixed limit to air. – There is not necessarily a connection between smelling and being exposed to danger, says section leader in the Norwegian Environment Agency, Harald Sørby. The section manager says that limit values have been set for emissions to air which should provide the necessary protection for the surroundings. – But if people feel uncomfortable, you have to take it with you. Then we learn that there is a somewhat complex picture around Karmsundet with several types of businesses. Whether these collectively produce an unpleasant smell is difficult to say, but we are in dialogue with the municipality to try to map and take a closer look at this, he says. June Monsen remembers when her mother was visiting and asked what the strange smell was when they were sitting in the garden. Since then, the smell problem has gotten worse, says Monsen. Photo: Marthe Synnøve Johannessen / news June Monsen does not live near the sewage pumping station, and until they find out where the smell is coming from, she keeps her windows closed. – I want a healthier home, but I don’t have access to air as I would like. And when we have visitors, it’s not nice to sit outside. One is in a way locked in one’s own home, she says.
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The neighbors think the smell from the factory causes burning eyes and itchy rashes – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
