Association of Odor Measures with Annoyance: Results of an Odor-Monitoring Field Study

Multiple assessments of ambient odor were made by trained individuals around a swine finishing operation in eastern Nebraska. Assessor responses were analyzed to determine relationships between field odor measurements/ ratings and ratings of annoyance potential, and to identify candidate measurement threshold values for causing annoyance. The likelihood of annoyance increased as odors became more offensive, intense, and concentrated, with r2 values of 0.89, 0.81, and 0.64, respectively. Candidate thresholds were sought to delineate both “any degree of stated annoyance and consequential annoyance, defined as likely causing a change in behavior or activity level and instilling some memory of the odor event. Candidate thresholds for any stated annoyance and consequential annoyance, respectively, were: 1 and 2 for intensity (on a 0-5 scale); 2 and 7 dilutions to threshold for odor concentration (as measured using a mask scentometer); and -1 and -2 for Hedonic tone (on a +4 to -4 scale)