Kalamazoo links broccoli smell to sewer system

[May 07, 2009]  KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) -- An official said he's found a source of the city's long-running mystery stink. Public Services Director Bruce Merchant says the "rotten broccoli" smell that's bothered residents of northeastern Kalamazoo since last summer comes from the sewer system.

Merchant said a "junction chamber" that holds sewage near a now-closed Georgia Pacific paper plant no longer gets the volume of flow needed to cut odors. The chamber also gets 150-degree discharge from a packaging plant.

The Kalamazoo Gazette said officials will install a carbon-equipped vent to scrub air the chamber discharges.

City Manager Kenneth Collard praises the city's stink sleuths but won't declare victory until workers rule out other possible sources for the stench.

___

Information from: Kalamazoo Gazette, http://www.mlive.com/kalamazoo/

[Associated Press]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.