FRENCHVILLE – A smelly issue caused by a Canadian chicken manure composting facility has become so bad for this small northern Maine community that an international gathering has been called for later this month.

Residents have complained that smells from the plant along the St. John River are so bad during periods of northerly winds that windows and doors must remain closed and outdoor activities are curtailed.

According to residents the odoriferous acidic and sulfur smells started 18 to 24 months ago. Residents fear health problems could be associated with the plant. At the very least, they claim, their quality of life has suffered.

The town of Frenchville has invited politicians and government officials from both sides of the river to meet with local residents at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 16 to discuss the situation at the Frenchville Community Center.

All residents of Frenchville received a survey Monday about the smell. Residents are asked how bad it is where they live, how it has affected their lives and whether anyone has become sickened by the malodorous problem.

Frenchville Town Manager Philip Levesque said the town knows little about the composting operation across the river. He said officials wonder if the facility is operated correctly.

“It smells like acid or sulfur, and it’s really strong,” he said Monday. “The last couple of weeks have been really bad.

“It’s an international problem,” he said. “We’ve made complaints to Environment Canada and the Maine DEP [Department of Environmental Protection] hoping things would get corrected, and nothing has happened.”

He hopes the meeting will give residents and the town some information about where this is going.

Levesque said the Canadian town across the river, St. Hilaire, New Brunswick, also has had problems, depending on the direction of the wind. He said the plant is near the river, and can be seen from some sections of Frenchville.

According to what Levesque has been able to find out, chicken manure is brought to the site from all over the Province of New Brunswick. Piles of it can be seen by some people.

He said the bad odors are especially prolific from the Queen Village housing area west to Rossette’s Restaurant. Sometimes the smells are evident two miles to the west as far as the Frenchville Post Office.

“It’s a real issue, the odor,” he said. “St. Hilaire has been working on this a couple of years, to no avail.

“It’s getting worse and worse, almost on a daily basis,” he said. “We can’t deal with the individual because it’s in another country. All we can really do is make complaints.”

Percy Thibeault, a resident of the area most affected by the smells, said it has been really bad during the last 18 months.

“Last summer it was awful, and worse in the Queen Village area,” he said Monday afternoon. “We formed a committee, Citizens for Clean Air.

“We don’t know the details of operation, but we need to voice our concerns,” he said. “This is affecting real estate valuations. They are going down.”

Thibeault said the problem is made worse by commercial pigpens operating west of St. Hilaire as well. That affects the western end of Frenchville.

“The survey will get us the information on how widespread this is, and how bad it is,” he said. “It’s been a hush-hush issue, but it’s blowing up.

“It’s affected our quality of life,” Thibeault said. “We can’t have barbecues, can’t open windows and doors because of the smell. It’s a nuisance.”

He said there are concerns about health, and long range issues involved with the smells and whatever is in the air. Thibeault called it an “environmental issue.”