CONSTRUCTION SITE MONITORING – Sonitus Systems

LOS ANGELES & LOS ANGELES COUNTY NOISE ORDINANCE GUIDELINES

Noise ordinances are specific laws with the goal to limit unwanted noise levels at various times of the day within different areas in and around the city.

Noise related to construction and demolition for any type of building must comply with the noise ordinance, which is in place throughout the city. When it comes to noise regulations within the greater Los Angeles area the time of occurrence plays a key role. When completing a development project of any kind, acceptable noise levels are relatively high if construction occurs within allowable hours. Meaning, during the night-time any type of construction work is practically forbidden.

IN THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES

Allowable construction hours:

Monday through Friday between 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Saturdays and National Holidays between 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Sundays, no construction except for residents

No construction work is permitted outside the hours mentioned above. A person who knowingly and wilfully violates this law is guilty of a misdemeanour. This is being documented in 41.40 LAMC- Construction Noise.

IN UNINCORPORATED LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Allowable construction hours:

Monday through Saturday between 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Sundays or National Holidays, no construction

Actual dB(A) noise limits are mentioned in the Los Angeles County Noise Ordinance as well. Noise limits will differ between residential areas, commercial areas, and industrial areas and are specified as per 12.08.440 LACM- Construction Noise.

HOW CAN CONTINUOUS ENVIRONMENTAL NOISE MONITORING HELP?

Measuring and monitoring site noise in a systematic and smart way helps site managers make more informed decisions about the preventive or corrective actions necessary to improve noise pollution control on site. Having continuous noise monitoring installed around your site is a huge addition.

Outside of helping companies to understand the actual noise levels and noise pollution, and whether this falls within the agreed and specified levels, conducting noise monitoring also enables companies to protect their own reputation and prevent unfair complaints or litigation from hurting them. If a community files a complaint about noise, then it is important for a company or site to be able to point to the facts; facts which can be derived from noise monitoring. With automated monitoring, higher incoming readings can be investigated immediately, dealt with and avoid incoming complaints.

Urban construction projects have a major environmental impact on occupants of residential, commercial, and public buildings. Keeping control of noise emissions from construction activities is continuous environmental monitoring which will identify excessive noise levels. The monitors are usually installed around the perimeter of the site to make sure noise emissions are monitored, controlled, and brought down to a minimum.

These systems provide continuous and reliable data which is uploaded to the online cloud platform and project managers will be notified via email & SMS text alerts when noise levels exceed the set limits and sites will always have proof that the strict working hours are honoured. In addition, audio clips can help find excessive noise sources. With an AI tool, construction related noise sources can quickly be identified.

*Please note

Although this information has been put together with utmost care, there are many different guidelines regarding noise for different projects such as construction. To avoid any fines, check out the guidelines mentioned in this article or call your local police department for more information.

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Sonitus Systems offers both the hardware and software for a range of environmental parameters on a continual basis, with real-time information available through our Sonitus Cloud dashboard. For more details on our indoor and outdoor noise and air quality monitoring products and services, please contact the team at https://www.sonitussystems.com/contact-us