The "Aroma of Tacoma", also known as the Tacoma Aroma, is a putrid and unpleasant odor associated with Tacoma, Washington, United States. [1] The smell has been described as similar to the odor of rotten eggs. [2] The odor is not noticeable throughout the city, but is rather concentrated in the Tacoma Tideflats and is frequently smelled by motorists traveling that section of Interstate 5. [2]
The odor has been commonly known by the name "Aroma of Tacoma" since at least the early 1940s. However, there are instances of the word "aroma" being associated with Tacoma dating back to 1901 when local resident George Francis Train penned a civic cheer: [3] [4]
Seattle! Seattle! Death Rattle, Death Rattle; Tacoma! Tacoma! Aroma, Aroma!
A variety of causes have been attributed to the Aroma of Tacoma, including sediment in Commencement Bay, sulfur released from the Simpson Tacoma Kraft pulp and paper mill, [5] [6] a rendering plant, the U.S. Oil refinery, or a combination of all of these factors. [2] In 1997, the odor was exacerbated for several weeks after municipal officials unsealed a sewage tank that had not been opened in 15 years during the height of a stretch of humid weather. [7] By the early 2000s, the odor had been lessened, but not eliminated, after the Tacoma Kraft pulp and paper mill installed new combustion technologies. [8] The WestRock paper mill closed in September 2023. [9]
The Aroma of Tacoma has been cited as the reason behind jokes about Tacoma, once frequently made by residents elsewhere in Western Washington. [10] Research in 2003 suggested the Aroma of Tacoma had contributed to a long-term depression of housing prices in the city. [11] Journalist and author Timothy Egan called it "one of the longest lasting nicknames in the Pacific Northwest" and used it as an example of the many consequences of environmental destruction along Puget Sound. [12]
During a concert stop at the Tacoma Dome in the mid-1980s, Bruce Springsteen reported the odor was so overwhelming that he was forced to leave town early. [2] [13] A local doctor said the noxious fumes were unhealthful. [13] The EPA said the smell was due to total reduced sulfur emitted by the downtown paper mill (1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the Tacoma Dome). [13]
In the 1960s, Jim Torrence and Don Lemon with Diamond Jim and the Jazzmasters released a 45 rpm novelty single titled "The Aroma of Tacoma." [14]
A rugby tournament held since the 1970s is called the "Tacoma Aroma", [15] as well as a hip-hop band from the Tacoma area. [16]
The Pacific Science Center held a symposium called "The science behind Tacoma's Aroma" in 2011. [17]
Tacoma is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, 32 miles (51 km) southwest of Seattle, 36 miles (58 km) southwest of Bellevue, 31 miles (50 km) northeast of the state capital, Olympia, 58 miles (93 km) northwest of Mount Rainier National Park, and 80 miles (130 km) east of Olympic National Park. The city's population was 219,346 at the time of the 2020 census. Tacoma is the second-largest city in the Puget Sound area and the third-most populous in the state. Tacoma also serves as the center of business activity for the South Sound region, which has a population of about 1 million.
Pulp is a fibrous lignocellulosic material prepared by chemically, semi-chemically or mechanically producing cellulosic fibers from wood, fiber crops, waste paper, or rags. Mixed with water and other chemicals or plant-based additives, pulp is the major raw material used in papermaking and the industrial production of other paper products.
Methanethiol is an organosulfur compound with the chemical formula CH
3SH. It is a colorless gas with a distinctive putrid smell. It is a natural substance found in the blood, brain and feces of animals, as well as in plant tissues. It also occurs naturally in certain foods, such as some nuts and cheese. It is one of the chemical compounds responsible for bad breath and the smell of flatus. Methanethiol is the simplest thiol and is sometimes abbreviated as MeSH. It is very flammable.
The International Paper Company is an American pulp and paper company, the largest such company in the world. It has approximately 39,000 employees, and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee.
Sappi Limited, originally incorporated as South African Pulp and Paper Industries Limited in 1936, is a South African pulp and paper company with global operations.
Canfor Corporation is an integrated forest products company based in Vancouver, British Columbia.
William Booth Gardner was an American politician who served as the 19th governor of Washington from 1985 to 1993. He also served as the ambassador of the GATT. A member of the Democratic Party, Gardner previously served as a member of the Washington State Senate, representing the 26th district from 1971 to 1973 and served as the Pierce County Executive prior to his tenure as governor. His service was notable for advancing standards-based education and environmental protection.
Smell-O-Vision is a system that released odor during the projection of a film so that the viewer could "smell" what was happening in the movie. Created by Hans Laube, the technique made its only appearance in the 1960 film Scent of Mystery, produced by Mike Todd Jr., son of film producer Mike Todd. The process injected 30 odors into a movie theater's seats when triggered by the film's soundtrack.
The kraft process (also known as kraft pulping or sulfate process) is a process for conversion of wood into wood pulp, which consists of almost pure cellulose fibres, the main component of paper. The kraft process involves treatment of wood chips with a hot mixture of water, sodium hydroxide (NaOH), and sodium sulfide (Na2S), known as white liquor, that breaks the bonds that link lignin, hemicellulose, and cellulose. The technology entails several steps, both mechanical and chemical. It is the dominant method for producing paper. In some situations, the process has been controversial because kraft plants can release odorous products and in some situations produce substantial liquid wastes.
The recycling of paper is the process by which waste paper is turned into new paper products. It has a number of important benefits: It saves waste paper from occupying homes of people and producing methane as it breaks down. Because paper fibre contains carbon, recycling keeps the carbon locked up for longer and out of the atmosphere. Around two-thirds of all paper products in the US are now recovered and recycled, although it does not all become new paper. After repeated processing the fibres become too short for the production of new paper, which is why virgin fibre is frequently added to the pulp recipe.
In industrial chemistry, black liquor is the by-product from the kraft process when digesting pulpwood into paper pulp removing lignin, hemicelluloses and other extractives from the wood to free the cellulose fibers.
Bleaching of wood pulp is the chemical processing of wood pulp to lighten its color and whiten the pulp. The primary product of wood pulp is paper, for which whiteness is an important characteristic. These processes and chemistry are also applicable to the bleaching of non-wood pulps, such as those made from bamboo or kenaf.
The Tasman Mill site is a pulp and paper mill located on Fletcher Avenue just outside the town of Kawerau in New Zealand. The Tasman Mill site is the largest single employer in the Eastern Bay of Plenty region. Three pulp or paper companies previously operated in Kawerau: Norske Skog operated the mechanical pulp mill and newsprint paper mill; Oji Fibre Solutions, formerly Carter Holt Harvey, operated the kraft pulp mill; and SCA who manufacture tissue and base paper.
The sense of smell, or olfaction, is the special sense through which smells are perceived. The sense of smell has many functions, including detecting desirable foods, hazards, and pheromones, and plays a role in taste.
The environmental impact of paper are significant, which has led to changes in industry and behaviour at both business and personal levels. With the use of modern technology such as the printing press and the highly mechanized harvesting of wood, disposable paper became a relatively cheap commodity, which led to a high level of consumption and waste. The rise in global environmental issues such as air and water pollution, climate change, overflowing landfills and clearcutting have all lead to increased government regulations. There is now a trend towards sustainability in the pulp and paper industry as it moves to reduce clear cutting, water use, greenhouse gas emissions, fossil fuel consumption and clean up its influence on local water supplies and air pollution.
The Simpson Investment Company is a company based in McCleary, Washington in the US Pacific Northwest that specializes in manufacture of forest products. Founded as a logging company in 1890 by Sol Simpson, the company now functions as a holding company for the Simpson Door Company, a manufacturer of wood doors.
Smelly socks are socks that have acquired a foul odor due to prolonged wearing on feet. Their odor, which is complex and remains the object of study, is a mixture of ammonia, fatty acids, and lactic acid.
Digital scent technology is the engineering discipline dealing with olfactory representation. It is a technology to sense, transmit and receive scent-enabled digital media. The sensing part of this technology works by using olfactometers and electronic noses.
Tacoma Defiance, formerly Seattle Sounders FC 2, is an American professional soccer team based in Puget Sound region in Tukwila, Washington, U.S. that competes in the MLS Next Pro, the third tier of the United States soccer league system, as the reserve team of Seattle Sounders FC. Formerly, 20 percent of the club was fan-owned through the non-profit Sounders Community Trust.
Rumford Mill is a pulp mill and paper mill located in the United States town of Rumford, Maine. The mill has two kraft pulp lines and three paper machines. The mill produces 460,000 tonnes of kraft pulp and 565,000 tonnes of paper annually. The mill has 621 employees as of 2016. Now owned by ND Paper LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nine Dragons Paper Holdings Limited, the mill is now known as ND Paper–Rumford Mill.
Tacoma's paper mill, located at the mouth of the Puyallup River, is well known in local lore as the supposed source of the "Aroma of Tacoma," the putrid odor that once permeated the city. According to Elizabeth Korsmo, curator for the Tacoma Historical Society, as early as the 1930s people were complaining about the foul stench, and the mill's role in creating it.