GENEVA, Ill. (STMW) — The stinky situation that developed in the Geneva neighborhood surrounding the Burgess Norton Manufacturing Company is expected to come to an end in early April.
However, company officials say they are doing whatever they can to minimize and contain the odor that began seeping into the neighborhood last fall.
To fully answer the questions and concerns of its neighbors, Burgess Norton will host a meeting at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the plant, 737 Peyton Ave.
“It’s been difficult to keep up with so many e-mails and so many phone calls,” said Rita Seiller, director of human resources at Burgess Norton. “We felt it would be better to open up the doors and answer them all at once.”
Neighbors initially began complaining of an odor emitting from the Burgess Norton plant last October. An investigation by company officials determined that the odor was coming from an oil called Lubsoil Gundrill that is used in a newer piece of equipment at the facility.
“We owned up to it and said, ‘If this is us, we’re going to own up to it,’” said Seiller.
To mitigate the odor, company officials installed an odor removal system utilizing carbon absorption.
They also enclosed every known area where odor was escaping from the plant.
“We have taken as many steps as we have needed to,” said Seiller.
Although many neighbors have noticed that the frequency of the odor has decreased in recent months, it has not entirely been eliminated.
Burgess Norton has assured neighborhood residents that while the odor is objectionable, it is non-toxic.
There appears to be an end to the odor in sight, since the responsible equipment is scheduled to be permanently shut down on April 1 and then moved to another location shortly thereafter.
In the meantime, the company plans to continue to do whatever it can to reduce the odor as much as possible, officials said.
Read the original article from WBBM News Radio.