EPA Protective Noise Levels

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According the Environmental Protection Agency - EPA - the Day-Night Sound Levels - L_dn - and the Equivalent Sound Level - L_eq - should not exceed certain limits to protect public health and welfare.

Values that should not be exceeded can are indicated in the table below:

• Outdoor yearly L_dn levels protect public health and welfare if they do not exceed 55 dB in sensitive areas as residences, schools, hospitals, etc.
• Inside buildings yearly L_dn levels protect public health and welfare if they do not exceed 45 dB.

Note! To protect against hearing damage, one's 24-hour noise exposure at the ear should not exceed 70 dB.

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Related Topics

• Acoustics - Room acoustics, acoustic properties - decibel A, B and C - Noise Rating (NR) curves, sound transmission, sound pressure, sound intensity, attenuation and more ..

Related Documents

• Acceptable Noise - dBA - Levels - Acceptable noise - dBA - levels at some locations
• Inverse Square Law - For every doubling of the distance from the noise source, the sound pressure levels - L_p, will be reduced by 6 decibels
• L_dn - Day and Night Sound Level - The EPA has defined an A-weighted sound level day and night equivalent for a 24 hour period
• L_eq - Equivalent Sound Level - Equivalent Sound Level - L_eq - quantifies the noise environment as a single value of sound level for any desired duration
• PNC - Preferred Noise Criterion - A noise measurement system for continuous or ambient noise in indoor environments proposed by Leo Beranek in 1971
• Preferred Noise Criterion - PNC - Calculator - An online Preferred Noise Criterion - PNC - Calculator
• SIL - Speech Interference Levels - Approximate speech interference levels