Environmental Noise Assessment Stonebridge Golf & Country Club Maintenance Facility Nepean, Ontario REPORT: GmE 09-042-Noise Prepared For: Rob Pierce 3584 Jockvale Road Nepean, Ontario K2C 3H2 Prepared By: Josh Foster, B.Eng. Vincent Ferraro, M.Eng., P.Eng., Principal October 13, 2009 127 Walgreen Road, Ottawa, Ontario K0A 1L0 Tel.: (613) 836-0934 Fax: (613) 836-8183 A member of the dfagroup www.gradientwind.com
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY At the request of, Gradient Microclimate Engineering Inc. (GmE ) has performed an outdoor noise assessment for the Stonebridge Golf & Country Club maintenance facility located at 741 Kilbirnie Drive in Nepean, Ontario. The maintenance facility is surrounded by residential homes to the north and west, and the golf course to the east and south. Noise from the maintenance facility can be grouped into two categories: (i) movement of vehicles on the property, and (ii) internal building noise. The maintenance facility operates from Mid-April to Mid-November. During this time the hours of operation are 05:30 to 16:00. Figure 1 illustrates a site plan and surroundings. The focus of this study was the maintenance facility only, and does not consider the activities of the entire golf course. In order to quantify the noise levels at the site, GmE performed specific noise measurements at the maintenance facility, on the mornings of September 4, 8, 9, and 10, 2009. Measurements were carried out between 05:30 and 07:30 at a total of five measurement locations, as illustrated in Figure 1. The work was performed following the procedures and using the equipment outlined in the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) guideline publication LU-131 1 and the City of Ottawa Environmental Noise Control Guidelines 2. Under these guidelines, the maintenance facility is considered a stationary noise source. The sound coming from the golf course maintenance facility can be described as intermittent, with long periods of relative quiet and short durations of varying noise levels. The biggest source of noise related to the maintenance facility is the movement of vehicles and equipment about the property. Results for the site measurements, of vehicle movements, are given in Table 5. Results for the site measurements, of internal building noise, are given in Table 6. Following the recommendations in Section 9, the Stonebridge Golf Course maintenance facility will be in compliance with MOE and City of Ottawa Noise criteria. 1 Publication LU-131, Noise Assessment Criteria in Land Use Planning, MOE, Oct. 1997. 2 SS Wilson Associates, City of Ottawa Environmental Noise Control Guidelines, April 5, 2006 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility i
TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 1. INTRODUCTION 1 2. PERCEPTION OF NOISE 1 3. OBJECTIVES 2 4. DESCRIPTION OF THE GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE FACILITY 3 5. SITE CLASSIFICATION 5 6. ASSESSMENT CRITERIA, SOUND LEVEL LIMITS 6 7. ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY 7 7.1 Weather Conditions 8 8. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 9 9. CONCLUSIONS 11 Figures Photographs Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility ii
1. INTRODUCTION At the request of, Gradient Microclimate Engineering Inc. (GmE ) has performed an outdoor noise assessment for the Stonebridge Golf & Country Club maintenance facility, located at 741 Kilbirnie Drive in Nepean, Ontario. The maintenance facility is surrounded by residential homes to the north and west, and the golf course to the east and south. Noise from the maintenance facility is grouped into two categories, including: (i) movement of vehicles on the property, and (ii) internal building noise. The maintenance facility operates from Mid-April to Mid-November, during which the times of operation are 05:30 to 16:00. The focus of this study is with the operation of the maintenance facility. In order to quantify the noise levels at the site, GmE performed detailed noise measurements at several locations around the maintenance facility. The work was performed following the procedures and using the equipment outlined in the Ministry of the Environment (MOE) guideline publication LU-131 3 and referenced documents NPC-205 4 and NPC-103 5, as well as the City of Ottawa Environmental Noise Control Guidelines 6. Under these guidelines, the maintenance facility is considered a stationary noise source. 2. PERCEPTION OF NOISE Noise can be defined as any obtrusive sound. It is created at a source, transmitted through a medium, such as air, and intercepted by a receiver. Noise may be characterized in terms of the power of the source or the sound pressure at a specific distance. While the power of a source is characteristic of that source, the sound pressure depends on the location of the receiver and the path that the noise takes to reach the receiver. Its measurement is based on the decibel unit, dba, which is a logarithmic ratio referenced to a standard noise level (2 10-5 3 Publication LU-131, Noise Assessment Criteria in Land Use Planning, MOE, Oct. 1997. 4 Publication NPC-205, Sound Level Limits for Stationary Sources in Class 1 & 2 Areas, MOE, Oct. 1995. 5 Publication NPC-103, Procedures, Model Municipal Noise Control By-Law, MOE, Aug. 1978. 6 SS Wilson Associates, City of Ottawa Environmental Noise Control Guidelines, April 5, 2006 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 1
Pascals). The A suffix refers to a weighting scale, which represents the noise perceived by the human ear. With this scale, a doubling of power results in a 3 dba increase in measured noise levels and is just perceptible to most people. An increase of 10 dba is often perceived to be twice as loud. In broad terms, noise sources are classified as either transportation or stationary. While transportation noise includes road, rail and aircraft sources, all other industrial and commercial sources are classified as stationary. A source of stationary noise includes all activities within the site, whether stationary or moving, such as lawn mowers leaving the maintenance facility in the current case. Noise levels for stationary sources are represented by the equivalent sound energy level, L EQ, measured in dba. It provides a weighted measure of the time varying noise levels, which is well correlated with the annoyance of sound. It is defined as the continuous sound level, which has the same energy as a time varying noise level over a selected period of time. For stationary sources, the L EQ is commonly calculated on a one hour time interval to assess its impact on residential buildings. 3. OBJECTIVES The primary objectives of this study are to determine the impact of noise arising from the maintenance facility on the adjacent dwellings with reference to the City of Ottawa criteria, and if necessary, provide recommendations for mitigation. Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 2
4. DESCRIPTION OF THE GOLF COURSE MAINTENANCE FACILITY The Stonebridge Golf & Country Club s maintenance facility is located in a subdivision being developed by. Single family homes and townhouse dwellings overlook the maintenance facility on the north and west sides. Two fabric domes stand on the maintenance property, including a 46 meters (m) 19 m dome with internal hard partitioned spaces, and a second storage dome measuring 46 m long 8 m wide, (Photographs 1, 2 and 3). The smaller building is used for storage; and the larger building houses equipment, such as tractors and lawn mowers, and a mechanics shop. The maintenance facility operates from 05:30 to 16:00 from Mid-April to Mid-November. Figure 1 illustrates a site plan. Noise emitted from the maintenance facility can be described as intermittent. There are long periods of quiet, and short durations of noise generation mainly related to the movement of vehicles and equipment in the area. Background noise is made up of a combination of natural sounds, and traffic noise from Prince of Wales Drive, and Kilbirnie Drive. Noise associated with the maintenance facility comprises two types of sources, including, (i) vehicular movements about the property, and (ii) internal building noise. According to the MOE guidelines, the movement of vehicles about the property is considered part of the stationary source. These vehicle movements include staff vehicles entering the parking lot, lawn mowers, power carts, and tractors (Photographs 4 and 5). During the first hour of operation, staff arrive on site, are briefed, and then disperse on various types of lawn mowers to cut greens, fairways, and other maintenance duties; these activities being after sunrise between 05:30 to 06:30 depending on the time of year. After the lawn mowers have left, the maintenance facility is quiet until the mowers return about mid-morning. The focus of this study was on the maintenance facility only, and does not consider the impact of the lawn mowers cutting the grass next to houses along the fairways or greens. Furthermore, according to NPC-205, the activity of lawn mowing is exempt from MOE regulations, as it states: Activities related to essential service and maintenance of public facilities such as but not limited to roadways, parks and sewers, including snow removal, road cleaning, Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 3
road repair and maintenance, lawn mowing and maintenance, sewage removal, garbage collection, etc. 7 Lawn mowing at golf courses is also exempted from the City of Ottawa Noise By-Law No. 2004-253, under section 15. (3). Therefore, the noise from lawn mowers, carts, and tractors was only considered when these vehicles are in the maintenance facility area. Internal building noise is associated with activates and operations from inside the building, and include the use of pneumatic tools, an air compressor, and grinding of metal. These activates are related to maintenance of the lawn mower fleet, and are emitted from the mechanics shop. Sharpening of lawn mower blades is done in grinding machines which operate only two weeks of the year (Photographs 6 and 7). Blade sharpness is maintained by using a hand held grinder and placing the blade in a vice. This activity only takes one to two hours each week. 7 Publication NPC-205, Sound Level Limits for Stationary Sources in Class 1 & 2 Areas, MOE, Oct. 1995, A3(2) Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 4
5. SITE CLASSIFICATION The MOE provides guidelines for control of noise produced by human activities. Sound level limits provided by the MOE 8 for the noise under investigation depend on acoustical classification of the site and the type of noise. Sites are classified as either Class 1, 2 or 3 as follows: Class 1 Area (Urban): Class 3 Area (Rural): Class 2 Area (Mixed): Represents an area with an acoustical environment typical of an urban area where the background noise level is dominated by an urban hum primarily generated by road traffic noise. Represents an area where the acoustical environment is dominated by natural sounds influenced by little or no road traffic. Refers to an area having qualities of both Class 1 and 3. According to the MOE guideline, A low level hum may be audible in a Class 2 area during the shortened daytime (7:00 AM to 7:00 PM), but would be absent during the evening and night. The constant hum of traffic coming from Prince of Wales Drive, and intermittent sound of traffic from the surrounding subdivision, would place the Golf Course maintenance facility in a Class 1 area (Urban). 8 Noise Assessment Criteria In Land Use Planning, MOE, LU-131, October 1997 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 5
6. ASSESSMENT CRITERIA, SOUND LEVEL LIMITS According to NPC-205 Paragraph 8 for a Class 1 area, the allowable sound level limits for sound from a stationary source, including varying sound and quasi-steady impulsive sound, is the background One Hour Equivalent Sound Level (L EQ ) occurring in the environment and typically caused by road traffic 9. Furthermore, NPC-205 also provides minimum exclusion limits, summarized in Table 1, within which the noise source is allowed to operate without restriction. TABLE 1: MAXIMUM ALLOWABLE NOISE LEVELS IN CLASS 1 AREAS One Hour L EQ (dba) Time of Day Class 1 Area 07:00 AM 19:00 50 19:00 PM 23:00 47 23:00 PM 07:00 45 The daytime (07:00-19:00) 50 dba criteria is applied at the Outdoor Living Area (OLA) and is represented in this case as the rear property line of the houses. The night time (23:00-07:00) 45 dba criteria applies at the Plane of Window (POW) or the back wall of the houses. 9 NPC 205: Sound Level Limits for Stationary Sources in Class 1 & 2 Areas (Urban), October 1995 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 6
7. ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY Site Measurements were performed in accordance with the MOE protocol described in NPC-103 10, using a two Brüel & Kjær Integrating Sound Level Meters, models 2231 and 2236, equipped with a Type 1 microphone Model 4188, and 4155 respectively. Noise measurements were carried out between 05:30 to 07:30 on the mornings of September 4, 8, 9 and 10, 2009. The meters were fixed onto tripods 1.5 meters above ground at five (5) measurement points around the maintenance facility, see Figure 1. Although winds were light, both instruments were equipped with a windscreen to eliminate any wind noise. Before and after each measurement period the meters were calibrated using a Brüel & Kjær Type 4231 calibrator. Noise levels for vehicle movements were measured over a one hour period, while staff arrived, and the lawn mowers departed the maintenance facility. Table 2 describes when and where each of the measurements took place. TABLE 2: MEASUREMENT LOCATIONS FOR VEHICLE MOVEMENTS Date Time Measurement Location Description Sep. 4 05:55-06:55 1 3 m behind fence in line with main building Sept 4 05:55-06:55 2 Rear PL of 58 Sandgate Ridge Sep. 8 05:30-06:30 3 3 m behind fence in line with storage building Sep. 8 05:30-06:30 4 Rear PL of 54 Sandgate Ridge Sep. 9 05:55-06:55 1 3 m behind fence in line with main building Sep. 9 05:55-06:55 5 10 m from the laneway behind the first block of houses Sep. 10 05:40-6:40 1 3 m behind fence in line with main building Sep. 10 05:40-6:40 5 10 m from the laneway behind the first block of houses PL = Property Line Noise levels from internal building activities, which includes noise produced by pneumatic tools, an air compressor, and grinding of metal, were measured 3 m behind the fence, in line with the overhead door of the main building, at measurement location 1 (Figure 1). Based on 10 NPC 103: Procedures, Model Municipality Noise Control By-Law, MOE, August 1978 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 7
GmE s experience and spot measurements around the maintenance facility, internal building noise has the greatest impact at this location. Table 3 describes the measurement scenarios, for internal building nose. Date TABLE 3: MEASUREMENTS OF INTERNAL BUILDING NOISE SOURCES Measurement Interval Source Sep. 8 3 Min. Blade sharpening machine Overhead door closed Sept 8 2 Min. Grinding blades in a vice Overhead door open Sep. 8 2 Min. Grinding blades in a vice Overhead door closed Sep. 9 2 Min. Use of pneumatic tools (Impact Wrench) Overhead door Open The sound coming from each of the noise sources inside the building was relatively steady over the measurement period. Since the internal noise sources are highly intermittent over a one hour period, the measurement interval described in Table 3, conservatively represent the equivalent one hour noise level (L eq ). 7.1 Weather Conditions Weather conditions for each day of noise measurements are described in Table 4. TABLE 4: WEATHER CONDITIONS DURING NOISE MEASUREMENTS Date Temperature Wind speed & Direction Weather Sep. 4 14ºC Calm Clear Sept 8 15ºC Calm Clear Sep. 9 14ºC Calm Clear Sep. 10 10ºC 8 km/h NNE Clear Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 8
8. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The sound coming from the golf course maintenance facility can be described as intermittent, with long periods of relative quiet and short duration of varying noise levels. The most significant source of noise related to the maintenance facility is the movement of vehicles and equipment about the property. Results for the site measurements, of vehicle movements, are given in Table 5. Results for the site measurements, of internal building noise, are given in Table 6. TABLE 5: RESULTS OF NOISE MEASUREMENTS FOR VEHICLE MOVEMENTS Date Time Measurement Location L EQ (dba) Sep. 4 05:55-06:55 1 44 Sept 4 05:55-06:55 2 43 Sep. 8 05:30-06:30 3 46 Sep. 8 05:30-06:30 4 44 Sep. 9 05:55-06:55 1 50 Sep. 9 05:55-06:55 5 54 Sep. 10 05:40-6:40 1 49 Sep. 10 05:40-6:40 5 51 TABLE 6: MEASUREMENTS OF INTERNAL BUILDING NOISE SOURCES Date Source L EQ (dba) Sep. 8 Blade sharpening machine Overhead door closed 47 Sept 8 Grinding with blade in a vice Overhead door open 55 Sep. 8 Grinding with blade in a vice Overhead door closed 45 Sep. 9 Use of pneumatic tools (Impact Wrench) Overhead door Open 50 Results from the site measurement of internal building noise indicate that the overhead door should be closed during metal grinding operations. The use of pneumatic tools with the door open is permissible only after 07:00 which complies with the daytime (07:00-23:00) criteria of 50 dba at the outdoor living area. Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 9
Results from the site measurements of vehicle movements show the highest noise levels are received at measurement location 5, which is 10m from the laneway, and represents the outdoor living area of the first block of townhouses on the west side. Here, the highest noise level recorded was 55 dba, which resulted from the passing of three lawn mowers and one tractor. The next day the passing of four lawn mowers and one power cart resulted in a noise level of 51 dba. Since the lawn mowers leave the maintenance facility before 07:00 the applicable criteria is 45 dba which is applicable at the plane of window (POW) of the townhouses. The closest approach of the laneway to the town houses is 18 m from the edge of the laneway. Noise levels at the POW can be extrapolated from measurement location 5 by the following equation 11 : L P2 = L P1 20 log (r 2 /r 1 ) where L P2 is the sound pressure level at distance r 2 from the source and L P1 is the sound pressure level at a distance r 1 from the source Therefore, assuming passage of the tractor is an uncommon event, using the results from September 10 th at measurement location 5 provides an estimate of actual noise levels at the plane of the window, calculated as follows: 51 dba - 20 log (18/10) = 45.8 dba Since the laneway diverges away from the townhouses, noise levels at the POW of the townhouses are expected to fall below 45 dba provided the tractors do not drive up the laneway before 07:00. 11 L. Beranek, Noise and Vibration Control, McGraw Hill, 1971, page 166 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 10
9. CONCLUSIONS Based on site measurements, the Stonebridge Golf Course maintenance facility will be in compliance with MOE and City of Ottawa noise criteria provided the following administrative policies are put into practice. (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) Tractors and other loud machinery must not use the laneway next to the townhouses before 07:00. Lawn mowers and power carts shall keep to the east side of the laneway when leaving the maintenance facility in the morning. Use of pneumatic tools with the maintenance facility doors open is only permitted after 07:00. The doors at the front of the maintenance facility shall be closed during operations that involve grinding of metal. This concludes our report. If there are any questions or clarifications required of our findings please advise us. In the meantime, we thank you for the opportunity to be of service. Yours truly, Gradient Microclimate Engineering Inc. Josh Foster, B.Eng. Project Engineer GmE 09-042 Vincent Ferraro, M.Eng., P.Eng. Principal Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 11
PHOTOGRAPH 1: FRONT (WEST END) OF MAINTENANCE FACILITY PHOTOGRAPH 2: REAR (EAST END) OF MAINTENANCE FACILITY Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 13
PHOTOGRAPH 3: ALTERNATIVE VIEW OF SITE, LOOKING WEST PHOTOGRAPH 4: LAWN MOWERS Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 14
PHOTOGRAPH 5: VARIOUS TYPES OF MAINTENANCE EQUIPMENT PHOTOGRAPH 6: BLADE SHARPENING MACHINE #1 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 15
PHOTOGRAPH 7: BLADE SHARPENING MACHINE #2 Noise Assessment for Stonebridge Golf Course Maintenance Facility Page 16