Who deals with noise complaints? I have lived in an address for a number of years. In the past year a piece of land next door has been sold and planning permission granted for houses. The building team now turns up and begins work at 7am Monday to Friday — no problem. However, they turn up at 7am Saturday and Sunday and work until 5pm. They have now taken to turning up even earlier; it was 5:30am Thursday morning this week. I have contacted the Planning Department and RCIPS and they say it is not their problem — unlucky. Surely someone must be accountable for this noise pollution.
Ask Auntie sponsor
Auntie’s answer: Yes, you are right about accountability but it doesn’t reside with the departments you mentioned. I have addressed similar questions previously and an official with the Department of Environmental Health (DEH) has reconfirmed for your query that it the organisation responsible for investigating noise nuisances.
There are two columns in particular that discuss noise complaints which I think would be helpful in your case (see Are there noise restrictions on home building? and Regulation of noise pollution).
As both columns note, the Public Health Law (2002 Revision) contains the relevant section under Part III – Nuisances. Section 7(2)(w) says any “noise or vibration (other than noise or vibration caused by an aircraft) which is a nuisance, is a statutory nuisance”.
The DEH handles noise complaints and determines if an abatement notice is justified. To register a complaint, call (743-5982) or email the department, or download and submit the complaint form through the DEH website.
The law mentioned in this column can be found on the CNS Library
Join the club! I used live close to the 911 center and at about 5am every weekday morning some idiot would wander round the parking lot with a two-stroke petrol leaf blower. If it wasn’t for my partner at the time stopping me I’d have happily gone over, grabbed the thing and shoved it where the sun never shines. There’s no real noise regulation on these islands.
Much of the landscaping noises could be reduced by converting to electric machinery. For example, I’ve watched electric leaf-blowers being used in Europe, and they’re remarkably quiet. Drivers of loaded trucks who use their engines to brake and operators of those hydraulic rock-hammers that you can hear from three miles away, seven days a week, should all be more considerate of other people, particularly at weekends.
Good luck with DEH!
Someone should inform RCIP that noise complaints are to be directed to DEH. When I called RCIP, after calling property managers about continuous excessive noise for a week, I was the one lambasted by the police for complaining. Noise is a problem here. In addition to the never ending construction, weedwackers, blowers, chainsaws, pressure washers and an array of gasoline powered tools are continuously polluting quiet residential areas. I think that these noisy power tools should be restricted to a couple of days of the week between certain hours as they are in upscale neighbourhoods in other parts of the world.
Why just the upscale neighborhoods??? ALL residential areas deserve morning peace.
I agree with you. I think my sentence was nt clear enough “between certain hours as they are in upscale neighbourhoods in other parts of the world.” I meant to say that upscale neighbourhoods in other jurisdictions have covenants, ordinances and property owners associations that implement restrictions on power tools during certain times. Apologies.