Over the years, odor from the Butler Area Sewer Authority's treatment plant along Route 8 has often provided an unpleasant welcome to traffic nearing Butler. It also has been unpalatable for food establishments, hotels and other businesses in that area.

If there were homes closer to the plant, there likely would have been frequent public outcries over the frequent odor problems. Fortunately, that isn't the situation, and, for whatever reason, businesses in the vicinity haven't demanded remedial action — although such demands would have been appropriate.

Belatedly, the authority seems to be getting serious about putting the odor issue to rest, recently having had a consultant study the problem and who, on Sept. 24, reported his findings to the authority.

The consultant, Allen Potter, recommended two possible solutions, the first being to raise the stacks that vent the plant's two scrubbers higher in the air and the second, adding an additional chemical air cleaning process to one of the scrubbers.

Even if the authority opted for both of those options, which probably would be best, there still is no guarantee that the plant would be 100 percent odor free — in terms of the surrounding environment.

But addressing the issue aggressively presumably would eliminate all but a small percentage of the current problem, and those options, combined with a proper balance of chemicals in use at the plant, are in Butler's best interests.

Potter rated the BASA plant at 7 on a scale of 20 regarding plant odor, with 20 being the worst. But people who must be in the treatment plant's vicinity on a regular basis might disagree with his less-than-damning assessment of the plant's odor factor.

Perhaps Potter didn't experience the worst of the worst that others have had to endure.

Regardless, the authority shouldn't procrastinate in acting to make the plant more friendly to its surrounding area, and to Butler as a whole. But first, BASA officials should ensure that the higher stacks will not create an odor problem for others now not affected.

The theory behind raising the stacks is that wind currents would quickly dissipate the odor. Currently, the buildings next to the stacks are higher than the stacks, meaning that the vented exhaust is not able to easily reach wind currents; the exhaust becomes trapped relatively close to the ground.

Granted, some of BASA's challenge over the years regarding the optimum operation of the plant has been the fast growth in its service area. John Schon, BASA's manager, said the volume of sewage is getting so large that it takes about a day for sewage to move from the lines on the edge of the system to the plant.

"In dry weather, like we've had this summer, sewage arrives at the plant already septic (smelling because of biological processes started in the sewer lines) when it gets to the plant," he said.

In addition to Potter's suggestions, Schon also has mentioned adding a cover to a settling tank that the sewage first enters.

Potter said the reason BASA's plant doesn't smell worse is because of the work the authority did in the past to try to control odor. But by his suggestions, Potter confirms that more could have been done some time ago, if the authority had been intent on minimizing escaping odors.

It is not to the authority's credit that it allowed itself to be sidetracked from that objective.

Butler should be committed to making a good impression on people coming to the area — especially those coming here for the first time. That shouldn't include a sign along Route 8 telling people to "Hold your breath for the next quarter-mile."

Unfortunately, there are too many times now when such a sign would be appropriate, even if, as Potter says, the odor could be worse.