‘Been going on a couple months’: Unknown stench makes its way through small town

By Tony Lopez

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    KNIGHTS LANDING, California (KOVR) — An unwelcome stench is making a not-so-soft landing in Knights Landing.

But what’s causing the smell in this quiet corner of Yolo County, and what can you do if your town suddenly becomes a nuisance to your nose?

There something in the air in knights landing.

“It’s been going on a couple months,” said Knights Landing resident Brett Archer.

Archer has lived in the small Yolo County town for years but says lately, there’s been a strong overwhelming stench.

“If you’ve ever removed your toilet in your bathroom, that’s exactly what it smells like through the whole town,” he said.

He says the aroma’s intensity is growing.

“Last night was the worst I’ve ever seen it,” he said.

Archer wonders if the smell is coming from the town’s wastewater treatment plant that uses outdoor holding ponds.

He says he’s complained to the district that operates the facility hoping to sniff out a response, but so far, nothing.

“You can’t get a hold of anybody,” Archer said. “If you do call them, they don’t call you back.”

We also reached out to the Knights Landing Community Services District, but our calls were not returned.

We checked with the Central Valley Water Board and the Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District. Both regulatory agencies say the wastewater facility has no recent violations or complaints.

So what should people do if they smell an offensive odor?

“You can file a complaint, complaints can remain confidential if that’s a concern,” said Stephanie Holliday with the Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District. “Those complaints come directly to our compliance division. We have investigators that are out every day in the field. They can go out and try and locate the source of what that odor is.”

Some other people we spoke with say they don’t smell a thing, but Archer says his nose knows and he’s fed up with this small-town stink.

“I would like not to smell this,” Archer said. “My concern is just the odor, it’s just offensive.”

The air quality district says anyone found violating emission standards faces fines — which range from 500-dollars — all the way up to several hundred thousand dollars.

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