SITE INFORMATION AND CORRESPONDENCE

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5.7 NOISE information on types, quantities,and operating schedules of construction equipment is not available at this point in project development,information from these documents for similarly sized industrial projects will be used. Use of these data,which are more than 30 years old,is conservative because the evolution of construction equipment has been toward quieter designs to protect operators from exposure to high noise levels. The loudest equipment types generally operating at a site during each phase of construction are presented in Table 5.7-7. The composite average or equivalent site noise level, representing noise from all equipment,also is presented for each phase. TABLE 5.7.7 Construction Equipment and Composite Site Noise Levels Loudest Construction Equipment Noise Level Composite Site Noise Construction Phase Equipment (dBA)at 50 feet Level (dBA) at 50 feet Demolition, Site Dump Truck 91 89 Clearing,and Excavation Backhoe 85 Concrete Pouring Truck 91 78 Concrete Mixer 85 Steel Erection Derrick Crane 88 87 Jack Hammer 88 Mechanical Derrick Crane 88 87 Pneumatic Tools 86 Cleanup Rock Drill 98 89 Truck 91 Source: EPA, 1971; Barnes et al., 1976. Average or equivalent construction noise levels projected at various distances from the site are presented in Table 5.7-8. These results are conservative because the only attenuating mechanism considered was divergence of the sound waves in open air. The noisiest construction activities will be confined to the daytime hours. Table 5.7-9 presents noise levels from common construction equipment at various distances. Given the distance to the closest receptors and existing noise levels, general construction noise is not anticipated to be noticeable. TABLE 5.7-8 Average Construction Noise Levels at Various Distances Sound Pressure Level(dBA) Construction Phase 375 feet 1,500 feet 4,000 feet Demolition, Site Clearing, and Excavation 71 59 50 Concrete Pouring 60 48 39 Steel Erection 69 57 48 Mechanical 69 57 48 Clean-Up 71 59 50 5.7-12 SAC/371322/082330005(LEC_5.7_NOISE.DOC)