N E W S
A P R I L 13
Qns. pols: FAA will fix
airplane noise measures
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is
being directed to take an updated look at the way it
measures aircraft noise and its effects on surrounding
WWW.QNS.COM | APRIL 2018 | LEHAVRE COURIER 13
communities in Queens and other parts of the
country.
The FAA will evaluate alternative metrics to the
current Day-Night Average Sound Level (DNL)
method of studying the airplane noise. The measure
was introduced as a provision in the newly enacted
omnibus appropriations bill.
Queens Congressmembers Grace Meng, Tom
Suozzi, Joe Crowley, Greg Meeks and Hakeem
Jeffries, who are each members of the Congressional
Quiet Skies Caucus, announced the provision on
April 2.
Under the DNL method, aircraft noise is measured
on a scale that averages all community noise during
a 24-hour period, with a tenfold penalty on noise that
occurs during nighttime and early morning hours.
The system was the result of a transportation noise
survey conducted in the 1970s. In 1981, the FAA
established “DNL 65 decibels” as the guideline at
which federal funding is available for soundproofing
or other noise mitigation.
Instead of producing recommendations based on
actual noise levels, lawmakers said, the current measuring
method relies on modeling and simulations
to determine “annoyance” levels. This system is
antiquated, according to Meng, who represents areas
including Bayside, Flushing and Elmhurst.
“The metric of 65 DNL has long been outdated
and does not adequately measure the true impact
of aircraft noise,” said Meng, founding member of
the caucus. “That is why it’s time to for the FAA
re-evaluate it.”
Suozzi, who represents a portion of northeast
Queens and Long Island and serves as co-chair of the
Quiet Skies Caucus, also backed the provision.
“Queens and Long Island residents deserve to live
in peace and quiet,” he said. “This provision will
require the FAA to take important steps in addressing
noise reduction so people are not bombarded at all
hours of the day and night.”
Queens residents, especially those in northeast
communities like Bayside, Flushing and Whitestone,
have fought an uphill battle against aircraft noise in
recent years. Data released from a sound monitor
installed in Flushing in August 2016 revealed noise
jumped beyond 65 DNL about a third of the time
measured.
In 2017, Suozzi announced the FAA would take a
series of steps to study and work to alleviate constituents’
distress after hearing concerns voiced at a town
hall meeting in Whitestone.
Queens is home to LaGuardia and JFK International
Airports, two of the busiest in the country. In 2015,
the FAA announced a multi-year effort to update scientific
evidence on the relationship between aircraft
noise exposure and its effects on communities around
airports.
Image via Creative Commons
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