Stuart WoodAuthorities in the Swedish city of Lund say they are spreading chicken manure in a park to discourage people gathering for Valborg, a spring festival.
In previous years, 30,000 people have gathered to celebrate the festival. This year, authorities are hoping to deter them using the smell – with the added bonus that the chicken manure fertilises the grass.
Gustav Lundblad, chairman of the local council’s environment committee, told the Sydsvenskan newspaper: “We get the opportunity to fertilise the lawns, and at the same time it will stink and so it may not be so nice to sit and drink beer in the park.
“Lund could very well become an epicentre for the spread of the coronavirus on the last night in April, [so] I think it was a good initiative.”
Sweden has so far taken a more relaxed approach to fighting the coronavirus, with less strict lockdown measures than many countries in the world. It has left shops, restaurants and gyms open, while asking rather than ordering people to stay at home.