Odour and Other Nuisance Smells

What can Torfaen County Borough Council investigate?

Torfaen County Borough Council has a duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to investigate and, where necessary, take action to deal with statutory nuisances.

A statutory nuisance includes any "smell arising from industrial, trade or business premises that is prejudicial to health or a nuisance". Statutory nuisance can apply to interference with homes and premises.

Odours from domestic premises

The Environmental Protection Act 1990 does not allow us to investigate odours from domestic premises as statutory odour nuisances.

Smells originating from domestic properties, such as from cooking or smoking odours (cigarette smoke or cannabis), are not covered by the Act. If you are concerned about the smell of cannabis from a domestic premises, then this should be reported to Gwent Police.

However, odours from domestic premises can be investigated for the following issues:

• Accumulations of waste producing smells
• Smells arising from the keeping of animals
• Filthy or verminous premises

These matters may still be actionable under different legislation, even if they do not constitute an “odour nuisance” under the Environmental Protection Act.

Statutory nuisance procedure for odour (Industrial, Trade or Business Premises only)

The presence of a smell does not automatically constitute a statutory nuisance. Odour cannot be measured, and there is no set level where an odour becomes a nuisance. The chemicals that give rise to smell are normally at exceedingly low levels and sensitivity to smell varies considerably between individuals.

Where appropriate, you may wish to speak directly to the person or business responsible for the smell, as they may not be aware of the issue.

If you wish to make a formal complaint to the Council about an industrial, trade or business odour, you must contact the Housing Safety and Environmental Protection team via email, online contact forms, or telephone. An officer will discuss the issue with you and provide odour monitoring sheets to complete over a minimum period of two weeks.

At the same time, we will notify the person or business responsible that a complaint has been made. This helps encourage early informal resolution.

If no monitoring forms are returned, no further action will be taken.

Once the completed forms are received, they will be reviewed. If they indicate a recurring pattern, an officer will visit the area on several occasions to assess the odour. Torfaen Council aims to resolve issues informally wherever possible. While the legislation states that an abatement notice must be served when a statutory nuisance is identified, in practice, informal measures are always attempted first.

Factors considered when assessing statutory nuisance include:

• Severity
• Nature or character of the smell
• Duration
• Frequency
• Time of day
• Weather conditions
• Neighbourhood character

Determining whether an odour constitutes a statutory nuisance can take time, especially when the smell is intermittent or short‑lived. If no statutory nuisance is witnessed during officer visits, the investigation will be closed.

We are unable to investigate if the source of the odour cannot be identified, as we do not have the resources to search for potential locations.

Odours from agricultural activities, such as “muck spreading”, generally cannot be actioned as they usually last only a day or so. If farm odour persists for more than a few days, we may be able to investigate, but we will require the location of the affected fields.

If the source is an industrial, trade or business premises that is already using best practicable means to control odour, we may be unable to require further changes.

Premises regulated by Natural Resources Wales (NRW)

If the odour originates from a premises regulated by Natural Resources Wales, you should report it directly to them. They can be contacted here: Natural Resources Wales

Enforcement options

Having considered all the evidence, the investigation will result in one of the following courses of action:

• No further action if no nuisance is substantiated.
• Informal advice to reduce odours where reasonable. For example: If you live close to a sewage works, farmland on which slurry is spread or a refuse tip, you may be able to smell those activities from time to time. All the council can do in those circumstances is require the operator to do what they reasonably can to minimise those smells.
• Service of an abatement notice if a statutory nuisance is confirmed and informal resolution is unsuccessful.
• Legal action if an abatement notice is not complied with.

All enforcement is carried out in accordance with the Council’s Enforcement Policy.

Last Modified: 05/05/2026 Back to top