News
24 June, 2026
Moss Vale mystery smell stumps everyone
There are many theories as to what a ‘mystery smell’ around the Lackey Oval area of Moss Vale is.
There are many theories as to what a ‘mystery smell’ around the Lackey Oval area of Moss Vale is.
The smell, which is like ‘rotten eggs’ (otherwise known as hydrogen sulphide) sometimes wafts across the oval and causes many people who hang around that area to be repulsed and either dash back to their cars or the safety of their own home if they are a nearby resident.
Depending on the concentration of exposure to hydrogen sulphide, there is an increasing possibility of annoyance and headache, as well as other symptoms including nausea, fatigue, bronchial restriction in some asthmatics, increased eye complaints, minor metabolic effects and neurological effects including memory loss and dizziness.
One resident who lives within a kilometre or so of Lackey Oval, Danuta Hulajko, has kept documented diaries over the past couple of years as to when the smell occurred and what symptoms she encountered.
“I used to keep a diary, and I am at Eloura Lane, Moss Vale,” Ms. Hulajko told The Southern Wire.
“The sulphur smell just comes out of the blue. The smell would always come suddenly and is very intense.
“For example, my eyes were watery on 13 April 2026 at around 7.12 am - the smell of sulphur lasted over an hour, then on 17 April, again the sulphur smell started from about 1 pm, and again on the 18 April at 7.55am it lasted for over an hour.”
Another resident, Anna Phillips, who lives near the Lackey Oval site, says the smell ‘comes and goes’.
“I smell it on occasions, and I often wonder if NSW Transport is doing some sewage pumping, as they do have a pumping station nearby,” she told The Southern Wire.
“Or is it steam emanating from one of the chimney stacks in the other industrial buildings around here?”
The Southern Wire contacted the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), who stated that they had not received any recent reports about hydrogen sulphide odours in the Moss Vale area.
“We take odour complaints seriously and encourage community members experiencing odour issues to report them to the EPA’s EnviroLine by emailing info@epa.nsw.gov.au,” an EPA spokesperson told The Southern Wire.
“Community reports are essential, as they ensure we have the most accurate picture of what’s happening in a community, and provide essential information to guide potential investigations.”
The Southern Wire spoke to several local businesses in the area including DFV Australia, located on the corner of Lackey and Lytton Rds. across from Lackey Oval.
DFV Australia are very clear that they are not responsible for the smell.
DFV Australia specialises in the pre - treatment, powder coating, and decorative finishing of architectural aluminium products, including their Ezy HD2 ‘timber-look’ finish, and have operated from that facility for approximately eight years.
“Our manufacturing processes are predominantly inorganic in nature,” DFV Australia Daniela Esposito told The Southern Wire.
“While we utilise chemicals as part of our pretreatment and wastewater treatment processes, we are not aware of any process at our facility that would be expected to generate hydrogen sulphide emissions or the characteristic “rotten egg” odour you have described.”
DFV has chimney stacks visible at the rear of their facility, and Ms. Esposito explained what they were for.
“The stacks visible at our facility are associated with process ventilation and the exhaust systems of our powder coating process and curing ovens,” she said.
“DFV does not burn waste chemicals or industrial by-products as part of its operations.
“To the best of our knowledge, during our 8 years of operation at this site, we have not received complaints from neighbouring residents of businesses regarding sulphur related odours originating from our facility.
“As we can only comment on our own operations, we are not in a position to speculate on potential sources of odours from other businesses in the same area.”
If you have experienced the smell around Lackey Park or if you know more, please contact us.
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