Guidelines for Airport Sound Insulation Programs (2013)

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1 1.1 Sound Insulation History Current operational trends show that environmental impacts . . . will be the primary constraints on the capacity and flexibility of the Next Gen unless these impacts are managed and mitigated. . . . Airports will need to escalate their efforts to address the environmental concerns of their neighboring communities. . . . Noise has been and will continue to be a primary area of concern. — Joint Planning and Development Office, “Concept of Operations for Implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System,” 2007 Those who anticipate a complete Federal solution to the aircraft noise problem misunderstand the need for federal, local and private interaction. . . . The primary obligation to address the airport noise problem always has been and remains a local responsibility. — Introduction to the FAA’s 1976 Aviation Noise Abatement Policy While the federal government has no jurisdiction over local or state land use decisions (i.e., zoning), the FAA can and does influence compatible land use planning. Under the Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act of 1979 (ASNA), the FAA was directed to define compatible and non- compatible land uses in and around the nation’s airports.1 Toward this end, in 1985, Part 150 of the Federal Aviation Regulations was adopted and established.2 The Part 150 process created: 1. A uniform system of assessing noise impacts around individual airports. These impacts are expressed in noise exposure maps (NEMs). 2. Land use compatibility criteria and measures necessary to enhance compatibility [i.e., a noise compatibility program (NCP)]. As part of an NCP, measures to achieve compatibility are proposed and typically characterized as either: 1. Noise abatement measures, such as aircraft flight procedures that reduce noise or redistribute it to less-populated areas, or 2. Land use measures, such as property acquisition or sound insulation of noise-sensitive properties. After the airport authority submits an NCP, the FAA will respond with a Record of Approval (ROA) stating which measures are approved or not approved and are eligible or ineligible for funding under its Airport Improvement Program (AIP). Since 1992, approximately $1.9 billion in AIP funding has been provided to sound insulation programs nationally. Additionally, $1.1 billion in passenger facility charge (PFC) funds has been provided since 1992. This combined investment C H A P T E R 1 Introduction 1 Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act of 1979, H.R. 2440, 96th Cong, http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/96/hr2440. 2 Docket No. 18691, 49 FR 49268, December 18, 1984.

2 Guidelines for Airport Sound Insulation Programs of more than $3 billion for sound insulation is an indication of the importance of achieving com- patibility between communities and airport operations.3 Without such efforts, aircraft noise will continue to be the primary constraint on the improvement of the nation’s aviation infrastructure. Mitigating the impact of aircraft noise on communities is known by a variety of terms, includ- ing noise insulation, noise attenuation, soundproofing, sound insulation, acoustical treatment, sound mitigation, and noise mitigation. Individual airports often give their programs unique names incorporating some of these descriptors. To avoid confusion, these guidelines will use the term sound insulation throughout. 1.1.1 The Airport Improvement Program The AIP is authorized by Chapter 471 of Title 49 of the United States Code (USC). Previously, the AIP was authorized by the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982 (P.L. 97-248, as amended). The AIP’s broad objective is to assist in the development of a nationwide system of public-use airports adequate to meet the current needs and projected growth of civil aviation. The act provides funding for airport planning and development projects at airports included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) and authorizes funds for noise com- patibility planning and implementation. 1.1.2 FAA Order 5100.38C, the Airport Improvement Program Handbook The Airport Improvement Program Handbook (also referred to throughout as the AIP Hand- book) provides FAA staff with guidance about the administration of the AIP. It sets forth policy and procedures to be used in the administration of the AIP. AIP Handbook Chapter 8, Noise Compatibility Projects, and its Section 2, Noise Compatibility Projects, focus most directly on sound insulation programs. In the interim between revisions of the handbook, additional information and guidance is provided to users through a variety of FAA publications such as Program Guidance Letters (PGLs), Advisory Circulars (ACs), and FAA directive orders. See the bibliography of publica- tions that are relevant to sound insulation at the end of this document. The Guidelines for the Sound Insulation of Residences Exposed to Aircraft Operations is a prime example of a technical report the FAA promoted through AC 1500 5000-9A. The guide- lines provide further information to sponsors and others who are involved in the management and implementation of sound insulation programs. 1.1.3 FAA Program Guidance Letter 12-09 The FAA issued PGL 12-09 to address confusion and ambiguity in the application of the two-step requirement for AIP eligibility for residential and other sound insulation projects.4 The AIP Handbook interprets Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 150 as requiring that structures be located in the existing or forecast yearly day–night average sound level (DNL) 65-dB noise contour and that noise insulation projects be designed to achieve interior noise levels of DNL 45 dB to qualify for federal funding.5 3 Jawad Rachimi and Joanna Norris, “A Synergistic Green Approach to Conducting Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Department of Energy (DOE) Residential Retrofit Programs,” Wyle Laboratories, July 25, 2008. 4 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012. 5 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, p. 1.

Introduction 3 Attachment 1 to the PGL replaces, in its entirety, Paragraph 812, Noise Insulation Projects, of FAA Order 5100.38C, the AIP Handbook, effective as of the date of the PGL. Replacement Paragraph 812 describes general requirements for AIP funding, specific eligibility and justifica- tion requirements and limitations, and special circumstances.6 Attachment 2 to the PGL is entitled “Handling Noise Insulation Programs That Are Currently Underway.” It establishes a transition period (fiscal years 2012 through 2014) during which the FAA will allow sponsors to complete the sound insulation of structures as planned, provided that all sound insulation projects undertaken during this time meet all required federal contract provisions (e.g., Buy American). Any sound insulation project that is started during the transi- tion period must be completed prior to September 30, 2015. Projects for which construction is ongoing after September 30, 2015, must fully meet the AIP requirements, including experiencing pre-insulation interior noise levels of DNL 45 dB or greater.7 PGL 12-09 has generated questions from airport sponsors and other interested parties. These are discussed throughout the document with a brief summary of the issue. Users are advised to consult with their Airport District Office (ADO) or regional office to determine up-to-date guidelines on these issues. Additional information regarding the PGL was issued as follows: 1. November 7, 2012: Revised memorandum regarding the PGL issued by the FAA as a Record of Changes to remove “AIP” from title of the PGL; three other corrections noted.8 2. November 9, 2012: Additional information regarding the PGL posted to the FAA’s website in the form of nine frequently asked questions (FAQs).9 These updated guidelines reflect information provided by the FAA inclusive of the PGL and these two items. Users can access the full text of PGL 12-09 and related documents on the FAA website at http://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/guidance_letters. Users of the guidelines should con- sult with the FAA for any information published subsequently. 1.2 The Guidelines: Previous Versions There are two previous versions of the guidelines, both authored by Wyle Laboratories. The first was written in 1989 at the behest of the Naval Facilities Engineering Command and the FAA’s Office of Environment and Energy and Office of Airport Planning and Programming.10 Wyle Laboratories was charged with creating “a report containing guidelines for the sound insu- lation of residences exposed to aircraft operations. The report provides a project management handbook for studying, initiating, and implementing residential sound insulation programs in neighborhoods around military and civilian airports.”11 In October 1992, in the interest of information exchange, the U.S. Department of Trans- portation (U.S. DOT) sponsored the dissemination of the document. The document (Report 6 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, Attachment 1, as amended on November 7, 2012. 7 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, Attachment 2. 8 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, http://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/guidance_letters/media/pgl_12_09_Noise Insulation.pdf. 9 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, FAQ, http://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/guidance_letters/media/pgl_12_09_ NoiseInsulationFAQs.pdf. 10 Wyle Research, Report WR 89-7, Guidelines for the Sound Insulation of Residences Exposed to Aircraft Operations, prepared for Naval Facilities Engineering Command and Federal Aviation Administration, November 1989. 11 U.S. DOT, FAA, AC 150/5000-9A, Announcement of Availability – Report No. DOT/FAA/PP/92-5, Guidelines for the Sound Insulation of Residences Exposed to Aircraft Operations, July 2, 1993, §2.

4 Guidelines for Airport Sound Insulation Programs No. DOT/FAA/PP-92-5) was made available for purchase from the National Technical Infor- mation Service.12 In July 1993, the FAA issued AC 150/5000-9A announcing the availability of Report No. DOT/FAA/PP/92-5, Guidelines for the Sound Insulation of Residences Exposed to Aircraft Operations.13 This document refers to those guidelines as the “1992 guidelines.” Note: The FAA underscored the continued relevance of the 1992 guidelines in PGL 12-09, stat- ing: “In 1992, FAA adopted guidance on testing frequency, sampling, and other statistical mea- sures that can be applied to a neighborhood to estimate the interior noise levels in the residences that are in the 65 dB contour.” The footnote for this statement cites the October 1992 guidelines as the “adopted guidance.”14 A second updated version of the guidelines was created for the U.S. Navy in 2005 and expanded the guidelines to provide information on how to build new sound- insulated residential structures versus sound insulating existing structures. A computer program provided with the updated guidelines made it possible for a nontechnical person to determine acoustical performance specifications for new construction based on input of basic construction information. Topics covered in these versions of the guidelines included: • Basic concepts of noise and acoustics, • Noise reduction requirements, • Sound insulating new and existing houses, and • Costs and code issues. Both documents are essentially technical how-to descriptions of designing acoustical treat- ments for existing and new residential structures. Both documents were sole-sourced documents commissioned by the U.S. Navy for the Navy’s specific use but subsequently endorsed by the FAA for AIP programs. As such, they were not intended to address the full range of issues typically encountered in AIP sound insulation programs (SIPs). The modification tables in Chapter 3 of the 1992 version and Table 3-2, Modifications for Existing Rooms, in the 2005 version display a methodology for codifying acoustical treatments within given circumstances. This methodology can be reviewed with a program’s acoustical consultant for its adaptability to specific AIP programs. 1.3 ACRP Project 02-24: Updating the Guidelines Per the request for proposals published by ACRP on February 24, 2010, the intent of ACRP Project 02-24 is to: develop updated guidelines for sound insulation of residential and other noise sensitive buildings for potential use by airport and non-airport sponsors to develop and effectively manage their aircraft noise insulation projects. Noise sensitive buildings are defined as “residences (single family and multi-family), schools, hospitals, churches, and other noncompatible structures identified in the sponsor’s NCP and approved by the FAA as a project in the NCP,” as defined in AIP Handbook FAA Order 5100.38C Chap- ter 8, Paragraph 812.A. To accomplish these goals, the researchers developed an approach predicated on two core concepts. 1. Build on the two previous versions by maintaining that which is useful and relevant while updating and expanding the guidelines in key areas not covered in previous versions, and 2. Assemble a research team from various consultant sources rather than relying on the experi- ence of a single firm or entity. 12 U.S. DOT, FAA, Report No. DOT/FAA/PP-92-5, Guidelines for the Sound Insulation of Residences Exposed to Aircraft Operations, October 1992. 13 U.S. DOT, FAA, AC 150/5000-9A. 14 U.S. DOT, FAA, PGL 12-09, August 17, 2012, Attachment 1, PGL, p. 1-6, Table 2.

Introduction 5 1.3.1 ACRP Project 02-24: Expanding the Guidelines While the previous versions of the guidelines have much information that is relevant and applicable to AIP-funded sound insulation programs, they are limited given the clientele for whom they were prepared, the range of issues explored, and the dated information regarding costs and codes. To address these issues, the research team expanded the purview of the guidelines to include: • Energy performance and sustainability, • Community outreach, • Improvements in products, • Current code and other regulatory requirements, and • Bidding methodologies and project costs.