EPA Document Collection

About the EPA document collection held by the Noise Pollution Clearinghouse.

Subject Index: A B C E G H I L M O P R S T U W
Title Index: A B C D E F G H I J L M N O P Q R S T U W

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Most useful EPA documents


Title Index

Guidance Manual for Police in State and Local Noise Enforcement Procedures
PDF

The purpose of this manual is to provide law enforcement personnel with the necessary technical skills and procedures to enforce State and Local motor vehicle noise laws. The manual has been written for use by the police officer charged with the enforcement responsibilities, as well as his supervisor.

Guide to the Soundproofing of Existing Homes Against Exterior Noise
October 1, 1977
PDF

This manual was prepared for the city of Los Angeles Department of Airports and is reprinted and distributed with their permission. This manual should be of help to the designer in selecting and conceptualizing various methods of soundproofing existing homes. The manual would be useful with the previously distributed TechShare Report No. TS-77-202, "Insulation of Buildings Against Highway Noise," and the current distribution of TechShare Report No. FHWA TS-77-220 titled "Background Report on Outdoor Indoor Noise Reduction Calculation Procedures Employing the Exterior Wall Noise Rating (EWNR) Method." This guide presents the various successful methods used in a 1970 pilot project to increase the noise reduction capabilities of existing houses for the Los Angeles Department of Airports. Three categories of modification from minor to extensive are covered. The guide also provides a basic understanding of the elements of noise control and the systematic method of soundproofing houses. This guide expands the repertory of methods and techniques of reducing the impact of highway traffic noise on its neighbors.

Guidelines and Sample Training Workbook for Police Enforcement of Noise Regulations
February 1, 1980
PDF

This report is one of the products of a contract between the EPA's Noise Enforcement Division and Jack Faucett Associates, Inc. One purpose of the contract is to develop materials suitable for use in training State and local police officers to enforce their noise control laws.

Guidelines for Considering Noise in Land Use Planning and Control
June 1, 1980
PDF

In recent years noise has become a recognized factor in the community planning process. Some significant advancements are being made in the reduction of noise at its source; however, noise cannot be eliminated completely. Local, state, and Federal agencies, in recognition of this fact, have developed guidelines and procedures to deal with noise in the community land use planning process. A number of Federal agencies have published policies and/or guidance on noise and land use. These agencies have done this for several different reasons: to carry out public law mandates to protect the public health and welfare and provide for environmental enhancement; to serve as the basis for grant approvals; and to integrate the consideration of noise into the overall comprehensive planning and interagency/intergovernmental coordination process. Because the purposes and uses of these policy and guidance packages are often different, they can appear to be inconsistent and incomparable. This situation may have inhibited state and local planning and decision making with respect to noise and land use and, thus, inhibited consideration of noise in various Federal-grant-in-aid programs. The purpose of this document is to put the various Federal agency policy and guidance packages into perspective. Although this document does not replace the individual Federal agency material, it can serve as the departure point for dealing with each agency's programs and facilitate the consideration of noise in all land use planning and interagency/intergovernmental coordination process. Although several of these Federal programs include noise standards or guidelines as part of their eligibility and performance criteria, the primary responsibility for integrating noise considerations into the planning process rests with local government which generally has exclusive control over actual land development. Noise, like soil conditions, physiographic features, seismic stability, floodplains and other considerations, is a valid land use determinant. Scientific evidence clearly points to noise as not simply a nuisance but an important health and welfare concern. The purpose of considering noise in the land use planning process is not to prevent development but rather to encourage development that is compatible with various noise levels. The objective is to guide noise sensitive land uses away from the noise and encourage non-sensitive land uses where there is noise. Where this is not possible, measures should be included in development projects to reduce the effects of noise. Section 1 presents consolidated Federal agency land use compatibility guidelines. Section 2 overviews techniques by which the guidelines can be implemented. Section 3 briefly overviews the major Federal agency noise control policies and programs. The Appendices contain brief descriptions of environmental noise descriptors and annotated bibliographies of selected Federal documents.

Guidelines for Noise Impact Analysis
April 1, 1982
PDF

The purpose of the guidelines proposed in this report os to provide decision-makers, in both public and private sectors, with analytic procedures which can be uniformly used to express and quantify impacts from noise, so that such impacts can be readily understood and fully considered within the comparative evaluations which constitute noise environment decisions. The procedures contained within the guidelines are applicable to the preparation of environemental noise assessments and environmental impact description of noise environment changes would be useful. The procedures allow a user to arrive at an objective, and for most situations, quantitative definition of noise impact. In many situations, the procedures will allow the calculation of a single number descriptor which expresses the total noise impact of a proposed project on the population exposer. The quantification methods recommended for impact assessment in these guidelines are further developments of the Fractional Impact Methodology used for assessing the health and welfare effects of a noise environment. Three principal types of noise and vibration environemtns are considered: general audible noise; special noises; and vibrations. There is a separate chapter for each of these principal types of environment.