Examination of Noise Management Approaches in the United States

This report is intended to serve as a reference document on noise-management approaches used in the United States. Emphasis has been placed on identifying and evaluating the full range of techniques and measures available when selecting a noise-management strategy. Broadening the range of choice is a first step in moving toward the resolution and prevention of noise/land-use conflicts. Awareness of the available options is of critical importance when individual actors in an issue have limited unilateral power to achieve objectives. The first three chapters of the report provide the reader with background material designed to aid in the understanding of noise-management issues. A brief description of the noise problem in the U.S. is given, followed by a discussion on conceptual approaches to noise/land-use issues. Some basic concepts of sound and the measurement and assessment of noise are reviewed. In addition, the management application of noise descriptors, relating human responses to noise-exposure levels, is examined. In Chapter III, a change is made from describing the noise environment, to describe the legal framework of statutory and case law that shapes management policy. Chapters 4 through 6 are devoted to identifying and evaluating management approaches.