Le Fevre Peninsula Odour
Odour on the Le Fevre Peninsula
The Le Fevre Peninsula is home to a diverse mix of industrial, commercial, and port-related activities. Potential sources of odour include heavy manufacturing, power stations, hydrocarbon and fuel storage facilities, bitumen storage and handling, fuel service stations, light industry, port and shipping operations, and transport and logistics activities. Vehicle emissions and domestic wood heaters can also contribute to local odour.
What is the EPA doing?
The EPA is aware of community concerns regarding odour on the Le Fevre Peninsula and is actively investigating potential sources and correlating odour complaints with wind and meteorological data. We are continuing to undertake odour detection work to better understand the nature, distribution, and potential sources of odour in the region. The EPA works closely with its licensed facilities, to ensure they comply with the conditions of their EPA licence and implement reasonable and practicable measures to minimise emissions and off-site impacts. The EPA applies a range of approaches to regulating odour including site inspections, compliance activities, and localised ambient air quality monitoring.
Why odour is more noticeable in winter?
During the cooler months, atmospheric conditions called temperature inversions can occur. Temperature inversions are especially common at nighttime and early morning.
Normally, warm air near the ground rises and helps disperse odours through the atmosphere. During a temperature inversion, a layer of warmer air traps a cooler air layer near to the ground, limiting vertical air movement. Combined with calm to light winds, this can trap odorous air closer to ground level and reduce dispersion upwards hence allowing the odour to propagate laterally across the ground. This makes odours more noticeable and persistent. Watch this short video for a simple explanation of temperature inversions and how they influence air movement and odorous air.
Further information on how the EPA manages odour can be found on our website: Odour management | EPA.
Source: Science Learning Hub. (2025, April 1). Temperature inversion [Image]. The University of Waikato. https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/images/1883-temperature-inversion.
How you can help
Community reports play an important role in helping the EPA identify and investigate odour sources.
If you experience odour on a regular basis, you can help the EPA by recording your observations in an EPA odour diary. Odour reports can also be submitted through the EPA’s online odour reporting portal. Detailed information from community members assists the EPA to:
- assess potential sources and target its compliance activities
- identify trends or recurring issues
- compare reports with site operations or environmental conditions
- determine whether further investigation or regulatory action may be required.
Further information on how the EPA regulates air quality can be found on our website: Air quality | EPA.
