Woonsocket, Rhode Island Residents Sue Over ‘Noxious Odors’ from Nearby Wastewater Treatment Plant

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Two Woonsocket, Rhode Island residents have filed a proposed class action in which they allege the operators of the city’s wastewater treatment facility and connecting waste incinerator have allowed “noxious odors” to invade their properties.

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The 23-page case accuses Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. and Synagro Woonsocket, LLC—which respectively run the Woonsocket wastewater treatment facility and incinerator facility—of failing to take reasonable steps to prevent odorous emissions produced during their industrial processes from drifting into the surrounding community.

The lawsuit claims that the noxious odors have interfered with the ability of thousands of nearby residents to use and enjoy their properties. One plaintiff says he “cannot walk outside [without] wanting to throw up” because the emissions make his neighborhood smell like he “live[s] across from a large city dump on a 90-degree day.” According to the man’s account, the offensive odors are a “daily” occurrence that prevents him from opening his windows and enjoying fresh air.

Per the complaint, the defendants operate a “two-part processing plant” responsible for “receiving, storing, treating, processing, and disposing of sewage waste from neighboring communities and wastewater treatment facilities.” The filing explains that raw sewage is first delivered to Jacobs’ facility, where it is treated, and then delivered to Synagro’s facility as sludge to be incinerated.

Although the defendants are required to harness their emissions by maintaining adequate odor mitigation and control technologies, a 2019 report by Bowker and Associates for the City of Woonsocket identified several odor emission problems at the wastewater treatment plant and incinerator, the case relays.

According to the report, chemical scrubbers at Synagro’s facility should have been capable of 90 percent odor-reducing efficiency but were working at only 50-60 percent. Other sources of noxious odor emissions listed in the report include seal openings in the gravity thickener, faulty ductwork, open bay doors, lack of proper coverings over the centrate pump station and “inadequate procedures” for trucks offloading sludge and hauling waste off-site, the case says.

“A properly operated and maintained [wastewater treatment plant] and solid waste Incinerator will collect, capture, mitigate, and control odorous compounds to prevent noxious off-site odor emissions from invading the surrounding community,” the suit says, claiming that the defendants’ “negligent” operation of their facilities have caused class members to suffer “substantial discomfort and inconvenience.”

The suit notes that Jacobs and Synagro have received numerous odor complaints over the past several years from local residents and the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. The defendants were also subject to a complaint filed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency in December 2021, which stated that their facility operations were out of line with requirements set by the federal Clean Air Act, the case shares.

“However, despite being repeatedly notified of its noxious emissions harming neighboring properties, Defendants were undeterred and continued spewing noxious odors off-site and into the properties of Plaintiffs and the Class,” the filing says.

The lawsuit looks to cover all owner-occupants and renters of residential property located within one mile of the defendants’ facility.

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