Owls head stinks, but it won’t kill

By Matthew Lysiak
The Brooklyn Paper

The odors coming out of the Owls Head Water Pollution plant may never fully be contained — but the good news is that the smell won’t kill you!

Those are the main findings of a $13,000 study unveiled at last Monday’s Community Board 10 meeting.

“The odors are not a source of dangerous chemical or biological emissions,” said Farrell Melnick, a spokesman for R.J. Lee Group, the consulting firm that did the report, which was funded through a grant obtained by Councilman Vince Gentile (D–Bay Ridge).

“But I don’t think the stench can ever be completely eliminated.”

Residents have been complaining for years about the odor wafting out of the plant, and in particular, the “grit and scum” building, where solid waste is strained from liquid and the “primary setting tanks,” the open-air containers closest to residential buildings.

Many also believed that anything that smelled that bad had to be toxic, so they were relieved to discover that they were only inhaling harmeless human waste.

But that good news didn’t stop some residents from fuming.

“I think it would only be right if Councilman Gentile was refunded the $13,000,” said CB10 member Allen Bortnick. “I am not sure how much this benefits any of us.”