Rybnisk Mayor Vows End to Persistent Odor Issue

The mayor of Rybnisk in Yaroslavl Oblast has responded to weeks of resident complaints about a pervasive odor, which locals suspect stems from burning poultry at a local farm.

Mar 1, 2026

During the New Year holidays, Rybnisk residents reported the city being enveloped in smoke from the suspected source.
Source:
Alena Kruglova, Overheard in Rybnisk / Vk.com

The head of Rybnisk in Yaroslavl Oblast, Dmitry Rudakov, made a statement regarding the stench that residents have been complaining about for several weeks. People suggest that the smell appeared due to the burning of livestock at a local poultry farm.

“We initially directed our actions towards protecting the citizens. The main requirement we set before the Ministry of Agriculture was to prevent negative odors in the city. As soon as they appeared, municipal control employees were put to work. Together with the sanitary-epidemiological station, a number of samples were taken and appeals were sent in all directions,” Rudakov reported on the TV channel “Rybnisk-40”.

The head of the city noted that during disposal, they began to take into account the wind rose.

“The interests of Rybnisk were taken into account. Today I can state that Rybnisk will not face this problem anymore,” declared Dmitry Rudakov on January 27.

Recall that during the New Year holidays, residents of Rybnisk complained about an acrid stench on the street. According to people, the smell of burning was coming from the local poultry farm, where chicken carcasses were allegedly being burned due to bird flu. According to residents, the smell was felt earlier as well. The authorities of Yaroslavl Oblast did not provide official comments on the situation.

The Investigative Committee of Russia for Yaroslavl Oblast began an inspection based on residents« complaints.

In mid-January, information about the problem reached the committee of the State Duma of Russia on ecology, natural resources, and environmental protection. The chairman of the committee, Dmitry Kobylkin, reported that the committee will send an official appeal to the Environmental Prosecutor«s Office and Rosprirodnadzor with a demand to conduct an unscheduled on-site inspection of the situation.