Powell resident Linda Johnson approached the Powell City Council again last week, hoping for a resolution to problems she has with smoke from her neighbors’ fire pit.

It was the third time Johnson brought the complaint before the council, but after reviewing all the information she provided, councilors concluded there wasn’t much the city could do to address the issue.

Johnson originally brought the complaint to the council in May, saying she suffers from mesothelioma and could smell smoke from her neighbors’ fire pit, which was aggravating her medical problems.

The neighbors’ activities did not appear to violate any city ordinance, and so Johnson was told that Powell police could not make them stop burning. The council said they would look into the issue and see if there was anything the council could do for her.

Johnson returned at the first meeting in July to see what the councilors had determined — and she provided guidelines used in Rock Springs, which state that residents should not burn in their yards if a neighbor finds the odors offensive. The councilors said they would review the materials and discuss the issue further.

When Johnson followed-up with the council again last week, Mayor John Wetzel explained the Rock Springs guidelines were not ordinances and therefore not enforceable by law.

He also explained there was no way to create an ordinance that would address Johnson’s problem without effectively prohibiting all burning in yards throughout the city.

“It’s hard to change ordinances for one particular instance,” Wetzel told her.

Johnson said she wasn’t looking for the city to pass an ordinance, but Wetzel said only if there was a violation of a city ordinance would the city have any means to address her problem.