An observant and curious reader sends me the following:
Is it just me or has anyone noticed the foul smell in the air around town? I know that Sacramento has been labelled a cow town, but it sure is smelling like cow shit around here since this latest storm passed through. Is there something I’m missing? Is there a livestock zone somewhere near here? I’ve lived in Sac for 15+ years and never caught whiff of this before…
Personally I haven’t had the pleasure. My recent forays downtown have suffered their share of sensory offenses but none was the distinct odor of cow shit.
2 Comments
I’ve noticed it too, very subtly when the breeze is blowing from the west toward my house. I’m fairly certain it’s a result of the recent heavy rains and the old city landfill. Dumps never completely go away, they just smell less when you cover them with lots of dirt. I live within sight of it to the east, though, so it’s not surprising to me.
It definitely smells dump-like, though. This is a distinctly different smell than run-of-the-mill cow shit. More complex and earthy, with overtones of leather and decaying fish (and some cow shit too).
February 27th, 2006 at 6:28 pm
Thanks for the comment, Matt. I did some
research.
Some farmers may also be spreading manure to
get the fields ready for spring crops. The odor is definitely coming from the
west.
Here’s a link in the News and REview from 2003 about a big dairy operation that was proposed in Davis. Unsure if this is where the odor is from:
http://www.newsreview.com/sacramento/Content?oid=oid%3A14086
February 28th, 2006 at 8:22 am
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