Town officials in Independence, La., on Monday shut off municipal water and sewer services to the DoRan Sea-Pak shrimp processing plant because of continuing odor complaints.
Residents and city officials have complained about the smell since the plant opened in May 2007 in a former mattress warehouse. The plant employs 50 people.
"If the wind's blowing the right way, or the wrong way, whichever way you want to take it, it's bad," John B. Lavigne of Independence told The Advocate. Lavigne and 26 other plaintiffs filed a civil lawsuit against the company in August; the suit is pending.
City officials say wastewater from the facility is overloading the sewage treatment plant and causing the smell.
DoRan delayed the plant upgrades so they could work through the shrimp season that ends in about 60 days, according to Mayor Michael Ragusa. The 30,000-square-foot facility can process about 4,000 pounds of shrimp per hour. DoRan officials say the town's sewage plant has its own maintenance issues that may be affecting capacity.
Ragusa won't restore the facility's water and sewer services until the company presents a suitable plan to the city engineer.
