Cully
Smells
But Why…
Where
to
Learn
About
That
Weird
Smell
✶
Where to Learn About That Weird Smell ✶
What is that
SMELL?
☻
Proximity to Industrial Companies
There are 31 industrial companies along the Portland Highway cooridor of the North Central side of Cully.
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What are they making?
From asphalt to aluminum and glass, these facilities range in production and off- gassing of pollutants.
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What are they omitting?
From lead to deisel particulate and a wild array of chemicals that can be hazardous to our health.
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Smell to Omission Map
Coming soon, a scratch and sniff to to help map where they smell is, where it’s coming from and what company is responsible for it’s emissions.
The following map outlines the polluters, potential polluters and their adjacent companies located with in the Cully neighborhood. This information and a more detailed list of emmissions data can be located with the Cully Air Action Team’s Factsheet here.
Why does it
SMELL?
LONG AND SHORT… Weather (& Pollution)
WE HAVE AIR INVERSIONS
WE HAVE EAST WINDS
Barometric Pressure breakdown!
Why is this Important?
Health impacts
Besides the fact that the smell can be unbearable through out the day, it’s affecting our health from short term issues like headaches, respiratory flare-ups, and throat issues to long term chronic issues like asthma and elevated risks of cancer.
As well, the proximity to the majority of Cully’s low income housing, many of these neighbors affected by these issues may have limited resources to resolve these health concerns.
“I originally moved into the neighborhood as a renter and just assumed the smells were something I had to deal with since it was cheap enough rent. Then I had the luck of buying my property in 2020 and grew closer to many neighbors who shared their concerns, and health issues, associated with the smells and proximity to Porter Yett Asphalt. Five neighbors in five years with cancers, including myself, doesn’t seem coincidental.”
Meg, Resident on NE Roselawn & Cully
What is being done already?
Aerial image of the Porter W Yett Ashpalt Facility
Aerial image of the North Coast Container/Myers Container Facility
Porter W. Yett Asphalt Co.
Ever smell a pungent construction smell like someone is paving a road in front of your house but no one is there? Or like a mix of gas, petroleum and oil? That’s asphalt and it’s coming from the facilities at 5949 NE Cully and their adjacent lots for their tax holding company Wynn Investments at 5910 NE Cully.
In the Spring of 2025, a group of concerned neighbors and the Cully Association of Neighbors (CAN) worked together to draft a lettter to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to address concerns about growing smells and increased truck traffic from the facility.
With the help of CAN, we joined forces with Neighbors for Clean Air Oregon (NCA), Verde and the Northwest Environmental Defence Center (NEDC) to meet with the DEQ and start conversations of getting Porter W Yett on a more strict regulatory permit as they have been on the lowest possible permit since 1920 when they were established. Their current permit does not require them to report their emmisions data.
From their meetings and with our public records requests it prompted the DEQ to also do a much more detailed inspection of the facilty which uncovered that a Blue Smoke Machine that supported particulate emmissions had been broken for potentially years, something that CAN and Cully Air Action Team had supported getting them to installed in 2017. Given that Porter W Yett was not required to use this machine by their permit, they just never inspected it or had much concern of it’s functioning.
This process in ongoing and CAN will be hosting a Townhall on December 8, 2026 to get the conversation moving into actions. Please send a message below if you want to volunteer or stay abreast of this issue.
North Coast Containers/Myers Containers
Ever smell that burning plastic smell, like burning Barbies, in the evening? Well that one is coming from Myers Container at 8435 NE Killingsworth street and North Coast Container at 8435 NE Lombard street.
From recent complaints as of August 2026, the DEQ has informed us that the facility has assured the DEQ they are in the process of obtaining a control device which should serve to significantly reduce emissions and are working on the necessary permit modification application for its installation. A direct quote from the DEQ inspector “Please rest assured that processing and approving the necessary permitting steps for the installation of this control device will be a top priority for DEQ as soon as the application is submitted. It is our goal to ensure that the permitting process does not delay the installation of this control.”
Cullysmells.org is now adding this facility to it’s community support process along with the CAN, NCA, Verde and NEDC team.