Development and Assessment of Odor Footprint Tools from Air Dispersion Modeling: A Case Study in North Dakota
AgriEngineering, vol.8, no.6, 2026 (ESCI, Scopus)
- Publication Type: Article / Article
- Volume: 8 Issue: 6
- Publication Date: 2026
- Doi Number: 10.3390/agriengineering8060237
- Journal Name: AgriEngineering
- Journal Indexes: Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI), Scopus, BIOSIS, Directory of Open Access Journals, Academic Search Ultimate (EBSCO), Natural Science Collection (ProQuest)
- Keywords: AERMOD, animal production facilities, odor footprint, setback distance
- Yozgat Bozok University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
As livestock production continues to consolidate into fewer but larger operations, odor complaints from neighboring communities have become a major challenge to industry growth, making the establishment of appropriate odor setback distances essential. This paper reiterates the development procedure of odor footprint tools for setback determination based on AERMOD, a regulatory air dispersion model, using North Dakota as an example. Specifically, we developed North Dakota Odor Footprint Tool (NDOFT), an Excel-based calculator designed to estimate odor setback distances between animal production facilities and surrounding communities. The tool utilizes county-specific meteorological data to predict odor concentrations at various distances and directions relative to an established annoyance threshold of 75 OU m−3. Setback distances are determined based on the percentage of time during which modeled odor concentrations remain below this threshold, corresponding to annoyance-free frequencies ranging from 91% to 99%. Facility characteristics, including livestock types, source areas, and odor control measures, are incorporated to enable scenario-based assessments. The influence of complex terrain on setback determination was also evaluated, revealing that no simple correction factors adequately capture terrain effects for valleys and hilltops. Overall, the use of county-specific meteorological inputs substantially improves the accuracy of predicted setback distances compared with area-representative approaches, providing an updated and more robust framework for odor setback planning and environmental evaluation. This work is expected to guide future efforts in developing and refining odor setback tools.