City officials are working on both short- and long-term solutions to air quality issues in Whistle Bend as complaints about the smell in the neighbourhood continue to waft in.

Brian Crist, the city's director of infrastructure and operations, said this morning the smell that's invaded the city's newest subdivision is "related to the lagoon,” but isn't a new issue facing the city.

In past years, the city has also heard complaints – depending on which way the wind blows – from residents in parts of Porter Creek and now in Whistle Bend, with some residents now living in the area.

The odour is evident over about a two-week period each spring, when the Livingston Trail Lagoon "turns over,” Crist said.

Essentially, the lagoon's bottom rises to the top, creating the smell which remains until oxygen mixes in and the smell dissipates. Crist explained it's a natural process that happens in lakes throughout the North each spring as well.

Crist said the city is using chemicals to help speed up the process as officials research equipment that could potentially be used to deal with the odour in future years.

"The technology's there,” he said, though he also pointed out "it's not cheap.”

Crist didn't have the figures on hand to say what special equipment could cost the city. He did say the city is also considering options that may help bring down the cost, like partnering with the Yukon government so the equipment could also be used in other communities.

"We're working on the price tag,” he said.

The city had awarded a $196,466 contract to AECOM Canada Ltd. for an aeration system. However, as Crist said today, when it became clear last year the system was not effective, the project was cancelled.

"It was a staged thing,” he said, noting the pilot project was planned in three phases so that if it wasn't effective, it could end before more money was spent.

The Yukon government, the developer for Whistle Bend, set aside $2.5 million to deal with the smell before the neighbourhood was developed.

The capital funds budgeted for the work weren't fully spent, Crist pointed out.

He hopes a solution can be found to the air quality issues that plague Whistle Bend and some parts of Porter Creek for about two weeks each year.

He emphasized the city recognizes that Whistle Bend is and will continue to be an important part of the Whitehorse community that the city is committed to serving.