Dealing with Gravel Pit Noise in Ontario

It is hoped that these thoughts may be useful. For expert advice, contact a environmental lawyer and a Professional Engineer specialising in acoustics.

Ric Holt, 13 March 2000
Corrections and improvements to this document are welcome.  holt@uwaterloo.ca

Ontario Noise Pollution Laws. The laws regarding noise in rural Ontario are reasonably good. Basically they require that the industrial noise you hear at your home (or within 30 meters of it) should be no louder than other noise (such has wind noise, highway noise, etc). The details, in technicalese, are in publications such as: NPC-232, NPC-233, and related Ontario government documents. The actual law is called the EPA (Environmental Protection Act) and it requires that Guidelines such of NPC-232 are satisfied. Some Townships have noise bylaws and others don't.

How do you know if the Provincial noise limits are being exceeded?

1. Common sense test. Stand outside your house, within 30 meters (or 30 yards) of your house, in a place where you can hear the industrial noise most clearly. Imagine what things would sound like if the industry was not running. This is called the background or ambient noise. If the noise from the industry is louder than the background noise, there is probably a violation of the legal noise limit. Squawks, screeches and temporary whines don't count for much in the legal limit (although they can be excruciating to listen to), so try to ignore them.
2. Ask MOE to run a noise test. The MOE (Ministry of Environment) is responsible for enforcement of noise limits, so they need to be able to measure noise accurately. You can ask them to take measurements. Trouble is, they won't do it. Ask them anyway, but don't expect anything. The MOE is loath to  take measurements, probably because if they recorded a violation (1) they really should act on it, which they don't want to do, and (2) almost no one in the MOE knows enough about noise to make a scientific measurement.
3. Buy a cheap noise meter. RadioShack makes a noise meter (haven't tried it!) which looks useful. The model number is 33-2055. It costs around $60 (US dollars). It measures "decibels" which is "loudness". In quiet rural Ontario, the ambient noise level during the day is commonly 40 to 45 decibels, perhaps 50. Farm equipment can temporarily drive it higher. Take a measurement on the industrially noisy side of your house. If you feel that most of the noise your hear is from the industry and the meter reads 50 or above, there is probably a violation. Sadly, the RadioShack meter can't measure below 50 decibels, so it's a bit disappointing, though pretty cheap. Now that we're into decibels, the limits for quiet rural Ontario are: 45 decibels in daytime (from 7 am to 7 pm) and 40 decibels at night (from 7pm to 7am). If you live within a few hundred meters of a gravel pit, it is unlikely that any major piece of equipment, such as a crusher, can be run within the legal noise limit (40 decibels) at night. Use common sense when taking measurements: make sure to ignore airplanes, passing trucks, and farmers cultivating! Be careful not to let wind blow on the meter, cause wind makes a lot of noise. The accuracy of the RadioShack meter is likely to be around plus or minus a couple of decibels. You probably don't need more accuracy than that, at least in the beginning.  Beware that the MOE and the pit operator will probably tell you that you don't know how to read a noise meter and will tell you that Radio Shack's instruments are inaccurate.  Truth is, you don't need to be a rocket scientist to measure noise.
4. Buy a professional noise meter. These are called SLMs (sound-level meters) . They are used by Professional Engineers and their staff to get accurate noise readings. They're pricey. You'll probably be out over $8,000 (Canadian) to get one of these. Larson-Davis makes good SLMs. These gadgets have lots of settings, so it helps to be a tinkerer to use one.  If you think that your disagreement with the industry is going to run on for years, an SLM may turn out to be an excellent investment. One of the main reasons to get one is so that the operator and the MOE start thinking your know what you're talking about when you wave one of these things around. No matter what you buy and how well you measure with it, there's a good chance the operator and the MOE will tell you that you don't know what you're talking about.
5. Hire a Professional. Companies like RWDI (Guelph) have Professional Engineers who are noise experts. They know much more about sound than all but 1 or 2 people (0 people?) in MOE. They can measure noise at your home for a fee, perhaps $2,000 to $3,000, depending on the situation, place, etc. They are also knowledgeable about the law. Besides, they have a good idea about what parts of the law are and are not enforceable. What they prefer to do is to set up meters and run them all week (costing considerably more). The reason they want to do this is because noise is quite variable from pits due  to equipment/mining activities, as well as weather. If you are pondering litigation (sue the so-and-so's!) you will need  measurements by a Professional. Professional Engineers must be honest, or else they lose their licenses, or anyway they're supposed to, and judges should be able to trust them. Still, they are human, and the pit operator can hire another Professional Engineer with a different opinion from your Professional Engineer.

1. Pit Operator. Always start by contacting the operator of the industry directly. Ideally the operator will react with politeness, will carefully listen to your concern, and will work out some arrangement to your satisfaction, such as "mitigating" the offending equipment or modifying the hours of operation. But  this may not happen. Jot down who you talked to, what was said, the date, etc. In case you are not satisfied after talking to the operator, consider doing the following.
2. MNR. Contact MNR (the Ministry of Natural Resources), for example, try (519) 482-3428, and explain your concern. The Ontario government has set up "one stop shopping" so that all initial contact about gravel pits is via the MNR. Be sure do jot down who you talked to, and what was said, because, if you pursue noise problems in earnest, you will find that you are walking into a blizzard of bureaucratic confusion. You are about to embark on a journey of telephone tag, delays, misinformation, etc. You will likely find that the MNR personnel knows no more about noise and Ontario noise regulations that you do, assuming you have read this far.
3. MOE. The truth is, the MOE (Ministry of the Environment), not MNR, is responsible for enforcing Ontario noise regulations (and the EPA). Try contacting MOE at (519) 826-4272. Be sure to jot down who you talked to, etc, etc. As with the MNR, MOE personnel are generally polite and are happy to explain a number of things to you, most of which are probably of no interest or use to you. Do not expect to get a clear idea of your rights or of what will happen next. Do not expect much from either the MNR or the MOE the first dozen times you call them. You will probably need to call them many times. They are very busy and do not have time to deal with people who are not insistent, so be prepared to hang in there with your complaints.
4. Mayor. Phone the Mayor of your Township and explain the problem with the noise. Your Mayor is a successful local politician and will be interested in people who vote for him. With luck the Mayor will be sympathetic, will know the operator of the industry, and will place a call to the operator and the problem will be solved. Don't count on this luck. Probably the operator has long since learned of this approach, and regularly trades drinks with local politicians of influence. When the Mayor phones the operator, the operator will explain that there is a short, unusual, and ever so slightly noisy job which is almost done and that there are some exceedingly difficult neighbours who spend their idle hours whining about local industry which is essential to the ongoing health of the community. Successful operators have learned to talk this way in an highly convincing and profitable way. Do not expect people at the township level to understand decibels or the laws regarding sound.
5. OPP. If the noise is particularly obnoxious, e.g., it keeps neighbours awake at night, phone the OPP (Ontario Provincial Police). The OPP will likely tell you that they will deal with loud beer parties, but not loud industries. Somehow, beer is more serious than gravel pits. The way to get the OPP interested is to say something like: "The neighbours are extremely upset and heaven only knows what's going to happen around here if things don't quiet down." Never, never say "violence" and hint directly at whatever awful thoughts may being running through your head. It is best if you can give the OPP the home phone number of the president of the industry. With some luck, the OPP might phone the prez, and this little nudge, especially if it is in the middle of the night, might motivate him or her.
6. MPP. Contact your Member of Provincial Parliament. Ideally your MPP will telephone the operator and use his/her influence to improve the noise problem. Your MPP is interested in personal opinions, at least those that represent a numerous set of voters or campaign contributors. Speaking of campaign contributors, the APAO (Aggregate Producers Association of Ontario), is the lobby organisation for Ontario gravel pits. They seem to do an effective job of influencing the government. They do a good job of talking to MPPs, and to MNR and MOE. The current (year 2000) Conservative government of Ontario has a slogan: "We're open for business." They don't actually say if they're closed to all the rest of us. So, contact your MPP, but don't hold your breath on this one.

The weather has a considerable effect on noise propagation. If the wind is blowing steadily from the industry to your house, you can get an extra 5 decibels of noise. If the morning is cool and very still, you can get a "local inversion", with cold air on the ground and warmer air above. This can cause the noise to arch up from the industry and then back down onto your house. These weather variations make noise measurements unpredictable. You wake up in the morning to a headache inducing roar of a crusher; by the time someone comes to take a measurement, the wind has changed, or the local inversion has warmed up. The MOE seems not to understand this. A Professional Engineer should. The Provincial noise guidelines apply to noise in the "worst case", e.g., when the wind is blowing that extra 5 decibels at you. Of course, it doesn't count if you only get wind in that direction twice a year. In much of Ontario, the wind may come from almost any direction, depending on the day, so this extra noise must be considered. If the operator, his agent, or  MOE staff measure noise at your house and find it within limits, this does not necessarily show that the industry is running legally. It just proves that at the time of the measurement, things were ok (assuming an honest and scientific measurement).   You may want to install an electronic weather station to get accurate wind speed and direction as well as temperature (these effect the noise), but this is not necessary.  You should study the weather trends to try to understand what conditions cause the worst noise situation.

The Art of Complaining

The operator, the MOE and the MNR will generally consider you to be a whiner, no matter how rational and knowledgeable you may be. For the operator, this position is the profitable one, because if they can dismiss you as a malicious eccentric, and if they can convince the MOE and MNR of this, they've won the ball game, and can run their operation any way they see fit. The MNR and MOE already have their hands full trying to stop bad guys from pouring diesel oil into creeks and the like. You're a bother to them. They want you to go away. If you dropped dead, their job would be easier. They know that noise problems, like skin allergies, get better and worse, but are almost never cured. MOE is responsible for enforcing noise limits, but it's not a job they take very seriously. This is a black-is-white, true-is-false Kafka world in which the MOE is legally responsible for controlling noise pollution, but in which the MOE encourages noise pollution by making it clear that enforcement of noise limits is minimal. How does a rational person deal with this irrational world?  Read on.

1. Complain early, complain often. Another way to put this is, "The squeaky wheel gets the oil." Make sure persons in a position to help (notably the operator and the MOE) hear from you often.  Be courteous, but be firm.  Make sure they know you will never, never, never go away. By the way, always use the word "complaint" when talking to these people. Otherwise, your message will be recorded as "So-and-so contacted me about noise (period)." Do not apologize for complaining, because your work is a service to the community.
2. Strength in numbers. Any complaint is more effective if it is from a "whole movement" (as Arlo Guthrie would say). Try to line up as many names as you can who are clearly on your side. A petition is helpful, because it's not so easy to claim that a whole neighbourhood is wacko.  However, once a petition is submitted, it will probably just sit on a shelf (see "Complain early, complain often").  Try to include people from various walks of life in your group, so it is harder to label your group as "city people" (or whatever).  Maintain a common position, which everyone in the group agrees to.
3. Complain in person. A voice over the telephone or a letter has none of the emotional impact of eyeball-to-eyeball communication. But keep up those phone calls and letters anyway, because they're so much easier to do.  Keep records of all visits.
4. Paper trail. Write letters (always keep a dated copy) to record the situation and your complaint. Operators love to say "I've never had a complaint about such and such in the last 3 years", which means, no one took the trouble to write a letter. Write to the ministries, repeatedly.
5. Knowledge is strength. Keep your facts straight. Give dates and instances. If possible, take photographs. Do not exaggerate, but call a spade a spade. If possible, describe the actual equipment, e.g., a blue crusher is making the noise. Learn all you can about the situation. Listen carefully to everyone, especially to the operator. Who knows, maybe there is a solution that could make both you and the operator happy.
6. War of attrition. Most noise problems cannot be solved in a matter of weeks. Often not in months. Be prepared for the long haul. Beware that this can be a long and emotionally difficult fight. If your marriage is fragile, you're worried about your job, and your teenager is experimenting with drugs, it's not time to take on the local noise pollution industry. After a few months of dealing with ministry bureaucracy, anyone can start thinking either they or the world has gone nuts. To the ministries, if you go berserk, fine, they have more time to work on things other than your complaint. To the operator, you are an obstacle to making a profit, and if you spin out of control, profits will be easier to make. Be prepared to laugh about the preposterousness of the whole situation. Tell funny stories about it. Celebrate any victories, however minor. Have a support group of people who are sympathetic.

Here is a collection of related items that may be of help.

1. Pit license.  It's a good idea to get the license for the pit and study it.  It may be that the license prohibits things you don't like.  It is available from the MNR.
2. Equipment license.  Ask the MOE if the heavy equipment (crushers) are licensed, and if so, ask for their Certificate of Approval (C of A).  This may help you understand more about the equipment and whether it is being operated legally.
3. Freedom of Information.  Most information about an industry that is recorded at a ministry is available to the public.  You can get this information under the Freedom of Information (FOI) act.
4. Back-up beepers.  The people in the pit being warned by them become habituated to the beeping and ignore it.  People up to a mile from the beepers can hear them.  The construction industry should seek an improved method of handling this safety problem.
5. Newspapers.  Getting an article in the local newspaper can be a bit of help.  However, the ministries and the industry aren't directly influenced by the press.
6. Licensing time.  The best time to solve noise problems is at licensing time.  If a new pit is being proposed, or if new equipment such as an asphalt plant is proposed, that is the time to seek constraints to guarantee reasonable noise levels.
7. Paranoia.  If you fear that you are in danger for opposing an industry or its noise, contact the police or OPP.  Explain your concern to them, especially if you have seen or heard something that seems suspicious.

You can make a difference!  Stopping noise pollution is a good thing to do, but it takes time and work to produce results.

Margaret Mead said: Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.

See also the web site http://www.gravelwatch.org
Last update: 22 April 2000