DEP awaiting tests for ‘cat urine’ smell in New Castle

NEW CASTLE, Pa. (AP) — State environmental officials don’t believe a “cat urine” smell plaguing part the city is harmful, but neither do they yet know what’s causing it.

New Castle residents began noticing the smell Nov. 1. The New Castle News says the smell is still lingering near a sewage treatment plant in the city’s Mahoningtown neighborhood.

Amanda Witman, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, says on-site monitoring didn’t detect any hazardous substances in the air. But tests on air samples to determine what’s causing the smell will take weeks to complete. The DEP is also testing wastewater to determine whether it’s causing the smell.