Compost-type odour monitoring
We regularly respond to reports from the community of compost-type smells in the Bromley area. This page shows our latest monitoring information including the number of reports we’ve received and any actions taken.
Reports
The following graph shows the number of compost-type odour reports we've received via phone, email, Smelt-it app or Snap Send Solve over the past six months.
Business hours of the compliance team are 8am-4.30pm, Monday to Friday.
After hours means weekdays outside of business hours, as well as weekends and public holidays. During these times, only serious events are attended.
Incidents
The following graph shows the number of recorded compost-type odour incidents over the past six months. We use reports from the community to inform our record of when incidents occurred.
Recorded incident means one odour discharge event. There may be many reports from the community that all relate to a single odour event/incident.
Attended incident means incidents that were attended by a warranted compliance officer. Not all attended incidents will result in the officer detecting odour as conditions may have changed.
Substantiated incident means that a recorded incident was attended by a warranted compliance officer and an odour was detected at the reported location. Once an officer has substantiated a reported incident, they carry out a 10-minute assessment to determine if the odour is offensive and objectionable. Not all substantiated incidents meet the threshold of being offensive and objectionable.
Outcomes
The following graph shows the outcomes of our investigations into substantiated incidents of odour with compost-type characteristics over the past six months.
Verified but compliant means the warranted compliance officer smelt something but it did not meet the threshold of offensive and objectionable. I.e. a recorded incident has been substantiated and a 10-minute assessment conducted, but it was not considered offensive and objectionable. Therefore, the incident was not a breach of consent conditions or the Resource Management Act (RMA).
A notice of non-compliance means the warranted compliance officer substantiated an odour and conducted a 10-minute assessment where it was found to be offensive and objectionable. The notice is a confirmation that, in our view, consent conditions or the requirements of an abatement notice have not been met. It informs the alleged offender of the consequences of breaching the RMA.
An infringement notice is a written notice of an alleged infringement offence under the Resource Management Act, issued in accordance with the Summary Proceedings Act. An infringement notice requires the payment of a fee of an amount fixed by regulations. Payment of the fine does not lead to the recording of a criminal conviction. An infringement notice can be issued for an alleged breach of an abatement notice. Infringement notices are suitable for responding quickly to relatively moderate offences that do not warrant prosecution.
Note that more than one infringement notice may be issued for a single odour event/incident.
Monthly summaries
March 2024
In March 2024 there was a total of eight smelt-its reported with reference to compost-type odour and one pollution event recorded after hours. These were not substantiated.
We undertook one proactive odour assessment for compost-type odour specifically, which was not substantiated.
In total, we spent close to 14 hours in the Bromley community undertaking general proactive monitoring for odour and responding to complaints. During this monitoring, nine incidents unrelated to compost-type odour were substantiated as having offensive and objectionable odour effects. These incidents were referred to a resource management officer for follow-up with the alleged offender.
The average response time during these incidents and proactive monitoring was 10 minutes.
February 2024
In February 2024, there were 14 reports of odour complaints, resulting in six recorded incidents related to compost-type odour (some reports were attributed to other odour types). Our team investigated two of these incidents, but they were not able to be substantiated.
We also undertook proactive monitoring. During this monitoring, six incidents were substantiated as having offensive and objectionable odour effects. These incidents were referred to a Resource Management Officer for follow-up with the alleged offender, as they were not related to compost-type odour.
Our warranted officers spent a total of 12.15 hours in Bromley attending odour-related pollution events including proactive monitoring. The average response time during these incidents was 10 minutes.
January 2024
In January 2024, there were no incidences of non-compliance relating to compost-type odour in the Bromley area.
Our warranted officers spent around 10.5 hours in Bromley attending to odour-related pollution events which included proactive odour monitoring. The average response time to attend the odour-related events was 10 minutes.
During the proactive monitoring, one incidence of odour was substantiated as offensive and objectionable. This complaint was referred to a Resource Management Officer for follow-up with the alleged offender, as it was not a compost-type odour.
December 2023
Our warranted compliance officers spent 12 hours responding to reports in Bromley, taking an average of 60 minutes to arrive at the location. Compost-type odour was detected at 4 of the 11 incidents attended. In one of these incidents, the odour was considered offensive and objectionable. As a result, a notice of non-compliance was issued to Living Earth.
November 2023
Our warranted compliance officers spent 6 hours responding to reports in Bromley, taking on average 30 minutes to arrive at the complainant’s location. Compost-type odour was detected at two of the eight incidents attended, but not at an offensive or objectionable level.
October 2023
Our warranted compliance officers spent 4.25 hours responding to three compost-type odour reports in Bromley. The average response time was 15 minutes. Odour was not detected on any of these occasions. The remainder of the incidents weren’t responded to due to the unavailability of warranted compliance officers at the time – our officers must prioritise their work concerning environmental incidents.
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