The factory down the street from me operates 24 hours a day and the paint fumes are terrible. Can the DNR do anything?
Yes, we can examine the facility to ensure that the exhaust stacks are above the local roof lines to increase dispersion of the odors. We can determine if any of the paints used contain hazardous air pollutants and if the concentrations are above the permissible level at the fence line of the property. Any painting operation that emits more than 6,000 pounds of VOCs per year is required to report air emissions on an annual basis, and sources that emit more than 1,666 pounds of VOCs per month are required to apply for air pollution permits. Your local Air Management Engineer has probably been working with this facility. In addition, you can work with your local zoning office to increase separations between residential and industrial sources and prevent future land use conflicts.
