Transcript It’s the Law

MASS DEP NOISE REGULATION AND
WIND TURBINES
Alicia Barton McDevitt
Deputy Commissioner, MassDEP
Massachusetts Wind Working Group
July 18, 2012
Mass DEP Noise Regulation and
Wind Turbines
• What is Noise?
• How does MassDEP
Regulate it?
• How does MassDEP
handle Noise
Complaints?
• Wind Turbine Issues
Update
MassDEP Noise Regulations
Article 97 of the Massachusetts Constitution
(Ratified Nov 1972)
“ The people shall have the right to clean air and water,
freedom from excessive and unnecessary
noise……”
310 CMR 7.10(1)
“No person owning, leasing or controlling a source of
sound shall willfully, negligently, or through failure
to provide necessary equipment, service or
maintenance or to take necessary precautions cause,
suffer, allow, or permit unnecessary emissions from
said source of sound that may cause noise.”
DEP Noise Policy #90-001
• A source of sound will be considered to be
violating the DEP noise regulation if the
source:
1. Increases the broadband sound level by more
than 10 dB(A) above ambient (background),
or
2. Produces a “pure tone” condition - when any
octave band center frequency sound pressure
level exceeds the two adjacent center
frequency sound pressure levels by 3 decibels
or more.
Report of the Independent Panel,
January 2012
• Independent Third party Review of Literature
• Key findings re Noise:
• Insufficient evidence that the noise from
wind turbines is directly causing health
problems or disease, BUT
• A possibility that noise from some wind
turbines can cause sleep disruption. Sleep
disruption has been shown to adversely affect
mood, cognitive functioning, and overall
sense of health and well-being
• Three Public Hearings, over 500 comments
received. Many comments concern noise,
infrasound.
How MassDEP Addresses Noise
• Pre-Construction Permitting
• Complaints
• Municipal Regulation Review
MassDEP Pre-construction
Permitting
• Noise impact analysis for projects requiring
air permits
• Ambient background study
• Sound modeling used to predict impacts at
property line and nearest residence
• EFSB limit 6 dB(A) for power projects
• DEP typically seeks to permit the project
below 5 or 6 dB(A) based on BACT analysis
• Wind turbine projects typically do not
require MassDEP pre-construction permit
Complaints
• City/Town first line of defense
• MassDEP Provides BoH Guidance
• BoH should try to reconcile the issues (determine
nature of complaints and conditions when impacts
are felt).
• MassDEP loans out sound meters and provides
training
• Short term attended study, attempts to measure the
maximum impact of the sound source
• MassDEP will apply the policy and make a formal
“compliance determination”
Municipal Regulation Review
• Oversight of BoH Regulations adopted
under Chapter 111, Section 31C, which
governs municipal air pollution regulations
• MassDEP Review:
• No less stringent than state regulation
• Regulations are reasonable
• Local regulations effective after MassDEP
approval and publication
• Munis can also regulate noise under zoning
or other by-laws
Falmouth
• In response to complaints, Town directed their
consultant to sample the sound from the Wind #1
Turbine.
• MassDEP reviewed consultant work and
recommended some additional sampling. Town
asked MassDEP to assist.
• MassDEP sampling of Wind #1 found levels > 10
dBA during quietest night time period.
• Wind #1 shut down until daytime sampling could
confirm that sounds from Wind #1 and #2 does not
exceed 10 dBA during daytime conditions.
• Wind #1 and #2 are now operating 7am-7pm.
Other Noise Complaints
• Town of Fairhaven Board of Health has
requested MassDEP’s assistance in determining
if the two Fairhaven Wind Turbines comply
with MassDEP Policy. Testing should begin
soon.
• In Kingston complaints have been reported
relative to the Independence Turbine from one
neighborhood. MassDEP supports project
developer’s efforts to address complaints, in
coordination with BoH and support from CEC.
Technical Issues and Questions Re:
MassDEP Noise Policy
• Only “A” weighted sound used
• Impacts of amplitude modulation and
infrasound ignored
• No limit on total day/ night sound (relative
impact standard)
• Use of attended study relies on technician
judgment
• Application of the 10 dB(A) compliance
standard based on use of maximum sound
levels versus average sound levels