title: The relation between modeled odor exposure from livestock farming and odor annoyance among neighboring residents.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Odor annoyance is an important environmental stressor for neighboring residents of livestock farms and may affect their quality of life and health. However, little is known about the relation between odor exposure due to livestock farming and odor annoyance. Even more, the relation between odor exposure and odor annoyance is rather complicated due to variable responses among individuals to comparable exposure levels and a large number of factors (such as age, gender, education) that may affect the relation. In this study, we (1) investigated the relation between modeled odor exposure and odor annoyance; (2) investigated whether other factors can affect this relation; and (3) compared our dose-response relation to a dose-response relation established in a previous study carried out in the Netherlands, more than 10 years ago, in order to investigate changes in odor perception and appreciation over time.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used data from 582 respondents who participated in a questionnaire survey among neighboring residents of livestock farms in the south of the Netherlands. Odor annoyance was established by two close-ended questions in a questionnaire; odor exposure was estimated using the Stacks dispersion model.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results of our study indicate a statistically significant and positive relation between modeled odor exposure and reported odor annoyance from livestock farming (OR 1.92; 95 % CI 1.53-2.41). Furthermore, age, asthma, education and perceived air pollution in the environment are all related to odor annoyance, although they hardly affect the relation between estimated livestock odor exposure and reported odor annoyance. We also found relatively more odor annoyance reported among neighboring residents than in a previous study conducted in the Netherlands.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found a strong relation between modeled odor exposure and odor annoyance. However, due to some uncertainties and small number of studies on this topic, further research and replication of results is recommended.
authors.affiliation: Office of Environmental Health and Safety, Public Health Services Brabant/Zeeland, PO Box 3024, 5003 DA, Tilburg, The Netherlands. daisyboers@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Boers
authors.affiliation: Office of Environmental Health and Safety, Public Health Services Brabant/Zeeland, PO Box 3024, 5003 DA, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Geelen
authors.affiliation: DNV KEMA, Arnhem, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Erbrink
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Epidemiology, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: L A M
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Smit
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Epidemiology, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Heederik
authors.affiliation: NIVEL, Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hooiveld
authors.affiliation: NIVEL, Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Yzermans
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Science, Faculty of Science, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Huijbregts
authors.affiliation: Division of Environmental Epidemiology, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: I M
authors.initials: IM
authors.lastname: Wouters
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000397:Air Pollution; D000822:Animal Husbandry; D000818:Animals; D001249:Asthma / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019570:Inhalation Exposure; D058751:Livestock; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D009426:Netherlands; D009812:Odorants; D055696:Olfactory Perception; D011788:Quality of Life; D012111:Residence Characteristics
keywords: Dispersion model; Livestock farming; Modeled odor exposure; Odor annoyance