University of Central Florida STARS Retrospective Theses and Dissertations Spring 1980 Noise Description and Noise Control at the Federal, State, and Local Level Bobby L. Henning University of Central Florida Part of the Engineering Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/rtd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Retrospective Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Henning, Bobby L., "Noise Description and Noise Control at the Federal, State, and Local Level" (1980). Retrospective Theses and Dissertations. 492. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/rtd/492 NOISE DESCRIPTION AND NOISE CONTROL AT THE FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL LEVEL BY BOBBY L. HENNING B.E.T. Florida Technological University, 1976 RESEARCH REPORT Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in the Graduate Studies Program of the College of Engineering at the University of Central Florida; Orlando, Florida Spring Quarter 1980 ABSTRACT Noise, that undesirable portion of the ever-present sounds of our environment, has until the last decade, been considered as an unavoidable by-product of our rapid population growth and its ac­ companyi.ng mechanization. As awareness of adverse he a1 th effects from noise exposure grew, the Federal government, as protector of the public heal th and welfare, took the initial steps to control no ise pollution. Federal legislation, beginning with the Clean Air Amendments of 1970, has been promulgated to control major of­ fenders and to assist State and local governments in their endea­ vors to provide the public with an environment free from harmful noise levels. This paper first discusses sound and noise, the methods for describi.ng and quantifying noise, and 1evel s n,eeded for protection. Secondly, contra 1 and abatement efforts are dis­ cussed with emphasis on l~gislated goals, the role of the Environ­ menta 1 Protection .Agency, and State and l oca 1 actions. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES. iv LIST OF FIGURES . v Chapter I SOUND AND NOISE . I II CONTROL AND ABATEMENT . 15 ·neve 1oping a Na ·tiona 1 Stra te~y · 17 Responsibilitie~ of the EPA. 18 ldentifi cation of major noise sources. .. 18 Re·gu l at ion of i denti fi ed major noise sources. • . 19 Proposals to the Federal Aviation Administration . 21 Labe l ing of noisy products. 22 Res ~ ear. ch, technical a.ssi stance, and pub 1 i c information . 23 Coordination of Federal noise efforts. • . 27 State and Local Noise Control Efforts. 29 III SUMMARY . • 4 • • • • • • • • • . , • I. • ,. • • 34 GLOSSARY. 38 BIBLIOGRAPHY. • 41 iii LIST OF TABLES Number Title Page 1 Yearly Average Equivalent Sound Levels 14 Id~ntified ~s Requisite to Protect the . Public Health and Welfare with an Ad~quate Margin of Safety iv LIST OF FIGURES Number Title Page 1 Limits of Audibility 3 2 Description of the Sound of a Single Event 8 3 Outdoor Day-Night Sound Levels in dB ( re 20 13 micropascals) at Various Locations ( y CHAPTER I SOUND AND NOISE Noise has always been an unavoidable part of man •s env i ronment, and as his numbers i ncrea.sed the quantity of noise to which he was subjected increased accordingly. As a result of his gregarious n a­ tur ~ e, man has concentrated himself and the products of his technol­ ogy i nto a cacophonous beehive 'Which today produces noise levels that jeopardize his me nta 1 and ph./~ i ca 1 we 11 being. In general, noise is defined as any unwanted or undesired sound. It follows from the definition that noise is confined with­ in t he limits of sound pressure l;evels which are acoustically per- · ceptible; hence, the theory, "if you can't hear it, it can't hurt you.'' However, recent studies have cast doubts as to the validity of this assumption. Presently, there is i nsufficient scientific evidence to con­ clude that excessive exposure to infrasound (below 20 Hz) and ultra­ sound (abeve 20,,000 Hz) can produce non-audi'tory disease in humans; however, it is known that exposure to sound in these ranges can produce a physiological response. Additionally, some animals de­ ve l op stress-induced diseases when similar physiological responses are elicited by extra-auditory sound. Since stress-related disor­ ders generally require a. ~ greater, . time span to develop than does noise induced heari~g loss, over zealous concern for the latter 2 may well have obscured the former. The Envi ronmental Protection Agency (EPA), in its efforts to establish noise levels adequate to protect the public, has recog­ nized the possible existence of sound induced, non-auditory disease. However, the ~ agency has concluded that if noise is maintained at l evels adequate to protect against loss of hearing the resulting noise 1eve 11 waul d probably be ins uffi ci ent to induce non-auditory diseases . (IJ,.. S. EPA .. Information on · Levels .•. , 1974 p. E-1). There­ fore, to date, the major effo_rts have been directed toward abate­ ment of sound 1eve l s in t he aud ) o~:~tri c frequency ran9e. Whether or not a given sound is perceived by the normal, hu­ man ear' is dependent on frequency and i ntensity. The frequency range for audible sound is 20 to 20,000 Hz i n young, otologically normal adults with the frequencies between 2000 and 4000 Hz being t he most acute hearing range. Whe~ the human ear is damaged by noi se, such damage is usually first detected near the audiometric frequency of 4000Hz. The minimum intensity level (flow rate of power per unit of wave front .area) which produces audibl:e sound is a functi on of frequency and this relation varies in a non-linear manner. If the audiometric frequencies are plotted against the minimum intensity level requir ~ ed to produce a hearing sensation, a curve is generated which defines the nthreshold of audibility". (See ~ Figure 1} As the frequency of a given sound is increased from 20 Hz, the intensity of sound requir ~ ed to p ~ roduce an audible sensation decreases unti 1 the frequency r ~ eaches the maximum acuteness range .......... ,.... ,..... ,... I, ~ ~ ............ 10- 4 120 - --~ 200 TH:RE S H ~ O L D OF :fEELING v I ~ ~ I I I lQi- 6 11010 2'0 I I I (.1) I __. I C"'oo I \ I LL.I ~ CXl ~ ' 1 u·l ;::; 80 \ -- 2 2! ......... L.J I..I.J (I') i I .... c \ I ......... (J") t- 'I t..J cz: I __. I 3: :z 1o·lO ~ 60 \ 0.2 >- I I > I c La.J ' -J ~ ... >- I t- I • I """' - >- ' ,I I ~ .X w (I) to:.-1 z ...... 40 .. 10.02 :::;) z (/) (.1)- L&.J ' ,(.1) t- :z ~~ I LLJ :z: L&.J ' a= It-- 0... 10- 14 :z 20 ~ 7 0.002 I I ~ THJ ESI:tOLD OF AUDIBILITY ~ L./ I I ~ - r--....r--..~ l 0 -16 0 v 0 . 00 0 2 I ~ ':'-- -v zo 10~ 1000 10000 FREQUENCY (Hz ) Fig. 1. Lim i t s a f a ud i b i 1 i ty SOURCE: Weber, Robert L.:. et. al., College Technical Physi,cs . (New York: McGr ~ aw-Hill Book Company, Inc. , 1947): 349 .. 4 of 2000 to 4000 Hz. At this point, the human ear is capable of perceiving sound with an intensity of less than 10-16 watts/cm2. It should be noted that intensity and loudness are not equal. Intensity, a purely physical qua 1 i ty, refers to the amount of energy flow per unit area of wave front per unit of time and is generally expressed in units of watts/cm2. However, since energy flow rate is proportional to the square of the pressure change, intensity may also be expressed in terms of the change in pressure. Loudness, a sensory quality, is a function of frequency, intensity, and the specific characteristics of the ear. Referring to Figure 1, at a frequency of 200 Hz, an intensity level of 10-14 watts/cm2 is just audible while at a frequency of approximately 3000Hz, this same intensity level is more than 600 times that required for audible sound. Or, expressed in terms of loudness, a sound of intensity lo- 14 watts/cm2 and frequency 3000 Hz would be much louder than the same sound intensity at 200 Hz. However, to a person who had experienced a temporary or permanent loss of 11 he a ri n g , ne i the r s oun d wo u 1 d be as l o ud n as to a pe rs on of normal hearing. Persons with reduced hearing capacity are said to have had a "threshold shift• . Such a shift may be due to ( 1) the normal aging process (presbycusis), (2) non-sound related diseases, or (3) noise exposure. Further, noise induced shifts may be temporary (NITTS, Noise Induced Temporary Threshold Shift) or permanent ( NIPTS, Noise Induced Permanent Threshold Shift). 5 Obviously, it is the amount of energy in the form of overpres­ sure which a sound wave possesses that determines the force of the impact which the sound wave delivers to the ear mechanism. There- fore, to quantify this energy an accurate means of measurement is necessary. Since it is difficult to accurately measure the energy level directly, a related system based on pressure change is em- played. As mentioned, the ear has a threshold of audibility lower limit of 10- 16 watts/cm2 while the intensity of sound produced by a Sa­ turn rocket at liftoff is 104 wat~s/cm2 (U.S.