Noise Studies and Noise Mitigation in the U.S.

This article discusses noise compatibility planning in the United States and offers case studies at representative airports. 1. Airport Noise Compatibility Planning In the U.S., the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) provides financial assistance for noise programs under Title 14, Code of Regulations (CFR) Part 150: Airport Noise Compatibility Planning. Airports undertake the voluntary noise compatibility process in order to be eligible for federal noise mitigation grants to fund projects such as land acquisition and sound insulation.
An airport noise compatibility study consists of two main elements: (1) a Noise Exposure Map (NEM) and (2) a Noise Compatibility Program (NCP). The NEM is the foundation for the entire project. The NEM document includes maps of noise exposure for the current year and a five-year forecast, which clearly depicts the compatible and non-compatible land uses within the airport environs, based on land use compatibility criteria. The data collection process leading to the preparation of the NEM includes information from various sources including GIS/Land Use Data and Airport Planning and Environmental Documents. Noise measurements are often conducted and analyzed as part of the NEM documentation process.  The NCP examines noise abatement and land use compatibility measures to minimize aircraft noise exposure to the population residing in the airport environs and to eliminate land use incompatibilities. Airport plan and airspace use alternatives are considered, airport and aircraft operations alternatives are evaluated, and implementation issues (including costs and benefits of recommended measures) are described in this document. A detailed action plan for NCP implementation is also prepared and submitted to the FAA as part of this documentation. Community outreach is critical to the success of a Part 150 study. The Airport and Study team must effectively communicate the study goals and outcomes to the interested public. The final Part 150 Study documentation must be submitted to the FAA for approval. The FAA considers each mitigation measure and approves or disapproves based on legality, feasibility, cost-benefit, and other criteria. A summary of the entire study process is shown on left. 2. Airport Noise Mitigation Efforts With an FAA-approved noise compatibility study, an Airport is eligible to receive grant funds for the approved mitigation measures. The following are typical mitigation measures: Sound insulation, avigation easement, and purchase assurance programs Noise and Operations Monitoring Systems (NOMS) Preferred flight tracks and navigation procedures Noise barriers and ground run-up enclosures Runway use programs Staff training Airport use restrictions (Part 161) Pilot programs and informational material Two examples of airport noise mitigation efforts are provided below: Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA): HMMH has been working at Beijing Capital International Airport (BCIA) as a member of the ASH, Inc. Team. The ASH, Inc. Team provided consulting to BCIA for the design, specification, installation, and acceptance of the state-of-the-art noise and operations monitoring system (NOMS). Since the opening of the third runway and Terminal 3, the ASH, Inc. Team has provided training in the daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly use of the NOMS as the airport assesses the existing noise environment and looks for opportunities to improve the environment. The ASH, Inc. Team has begun a new project to evaluate the existing noise environment and determine potential noise mitigation and abatement options. The work on this project will continue into 2009. Boston’s Logan International Airport (BOS): The FAA decided that 68 percent of turbojet aircraft departing from Runway 27 at Logan International Airport should pass through a narrow corridor in order to maximize overflight of compatible land uses southwest of the airport. To attain conformance within the corridor, the FAA implemented a Flight Management System (FMS) RNAV procedure in addition to the Standard Instrument Departure (SID), expecting that the advanced navigation technology would achieve the stated goal. However, HMMH’s analysis of the resulting flight tracks showed that most aircraft were overshooting the first two noise-abatement “gates” that defined the corridor. To help correct the problem, HMMH worked with Northwest Airlines in a voluntary flight test to implement changes in cockpit procedures for engaging and flying the departure route. This figure compares flights using the improved departure procedure (red) against flights flown with the original procedure. More information on FAA’s 14 CFR Part 150 Program can be found at: http://www.faa.gov/airports_airtraffic/airports/environmental/airport_noise/ HMMH is a noise consulting firm headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts. Since our founding in 1981, HMMH has grown into one of the largest and best-known environmental noise-consulting firms in the world. Transportation noise related to aviation, rail, and highways continues to be the focus of 95 percent of our business. We have provided noise consulting services on six continents. Our experience with airport noise compatibility studies at more than 70 airports provides a broad cross-section of potential measures to be considered. HMMH noise studies focus on finding effective and implementable measures and on public perception. . The Request Management and Change Request Handling solution can be tailored depend-ing on the wants and needs of the client. On the one hand a holistic implementation solution can be tailored. If the customer has already a Request Management and Change Request Handling on the other hand, cost savings can be enabled by improving the efficiency of the existing processes.