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MENTONE - Appearing at the Mentone Town Council meeting Monday to address the problem with the odor in town, Mike Casper of Mentone Egg Products/Midwest Poultry Services said not all the smells are the fault of his company.
Casper said the lagoons at Mentone Egg do turn over every spring giving off a "septic smell," but that the odor for which the company was blamed this winter was not from Mentone Egg.
"The winter smell that we were blamed for wasn't us," Casper said. "It was a farmer spreading manure on a field directly east of us ... I knew we'd get blamed for that."
Casper explained that eggs are high in protein and don't break down as well as waste products, such as the town's lagoon does. He said the company has tried various products to combat the odor and added a new product to the lagoon about three weeks ago. The Mentone Egg lagoon turnover began about the first of May and the process usually takes about four weeks, Casper said. "By this time next week, the smell will be all gone."
Dexter Wise, who lives outside Mentone town limits, but across from the field where the waste application from the company's lagoon is made, challenged Casper as to alleged Indiana Department of Environmental Management citations for violations.
Casper said IDEM officials come out every time a complaint is made and testing shows that the lagoon is in compliance with the permits held by Mentone Egg. Records from IDEM are on file and available for public inspection, Casper said, so he refused to debate the issues with Wise during the public meeting. He did, however, deny being reprimanded by IDEM for improper land application.
Residents came to the council meeting in May complaining about the odor in town. Residents and town officials believed that Mentone Egg was responsible for the smell and the town's attorney addressed the company via letter asking for an explanation of the problem. The odor problem also has been brought up in past years.
In other business, the town council approved the purchase of a new sand spreader at a cost of $3,478, including installation and controls.
Also, an announcement was made that the fire hydrants in town will be flushed Wednesday and Thursday. Residents should refrain from washing clothes during this time to avoid discoloration. Also, some customers may experience a decrease in water pressure during the flushing process.
The Mentone Town Council comprises Ed Rock, Ed Lamar and Mike Diemer. The next meeting is at 7 p.m. July 3 in the town hall.
