The snow is nearly gone and the fresh smell of spring is in the air.
Some find it pleasant but others wonder what that awful musty smell is that irritates your nostrils come spring time.
Some may say it smells like you stepped in something you really shouldn’t have.
Well, don’t blame man’s best friend or any mysterious garbage that reveals itself during the spring thaw.
That unusual aroma is something called “Geosmin” which literally means Earth smell.
“What happens is bacteria in healthy soil produces 'Geosmin,' and it’s released into the air, it’s a chemical that’s found naturally in algae rich waters and healthy soil,” stated Bronya Cuddy Gregg, formerly of the North Bay Mattawa Conservation Authority.
“That smell is a smell that humans are very sensitive to. We can smell 5 parts per trillion for instance and if you put one drop of pure geosmin – the chemical – into an Olympic size swimming pool humans would be able to detect it.”
Whether you enjoy it or not, that geosmin smell isn’t exclusive to the North Bay area – it’s a smell that can be found everywhere in Canada – and for many Canadians that really stinks.
