[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
Muncy as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-5-1991 by Ord. No. 422 (Ch. 10, Part 3, of the
1993 Code)]
It is the purpose and scope of this article to provide regulations
defining the maximum sound levels that vehicles, live or recorded
music and sound amplification systems, appliances and equipment shall
be allowed to produce at specified distances from these devices, and
also to provide for the prohibition of other kinds of prohibited noises.
These regulations and prohibitions are intended to protect the physical,
mental and social well-being of the residents of the Borough.
This article shall apply to:
A.
All types of vehicles, appliances and equipment, whether privately
or publicly owned.
B.
Live or recorded music and amplification systems.
C.
Sounds of any duration.
D.
Both an owner and operator of vehicles, appliances, equipment, musical
systems, animals or any other object creating noises, and also, for
musical noise, the organization or individual hiring the music.
The following devices are exempt from the provisions of these
regulations:
A.
Aircraft (except model aircraft).
B.
Police, fire, ambulance and other governmental emergency vehicles.
C.
Backup alarm devices on trucks and other equipment when installed
and operated in accordance with Society of Automotive Engineers recommended
practice J994, "Criteria for Backup Alarm Devices."
D.
Governmental warning devices (i.e., civil defense or fire siren).
All acoustical terminology shall be that contained in ANSI S1.1,
"Acoustical Terminology." Additionally, the following terms shall
have the meaning indicated:
American National Standards Institute or its successors.
Any device or combination of devices used or capable of being
used as a means of accomplishing a desired end, such as a window air-conditioning
unit.
The twenty-four-hour period starting at local midnight.
6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
A unit of sound level which is a division of logarithmic
scale used to express the ratio of the sound intensity of the source
to the intensity of an arbitrarily chosen reference intensity. The
ratio is expressed on the decibel scale by multiplying its base-ten
logarithm by 10.
Any devices or combination of devices to accomplish a desired
end, such as a chain saw, bulldozer, musical instrument, amplification,
etc.
That sound which is:
A noise whose sound level varies significantly with time.
Impulsive noise is characterized by brief excursions of sound
level. The duration of a single impulse is usually less than one second.
A noise whose sound level exceeds the ambient noise levels
at least twice during the period of observation, which is one minute
or more. The period of time during which the level of the noise remains
at an essentially constant value different from that of the ambient
is on the order of one second or more.
Any sound emitted by a person, animal, vehicle, appliance,
equipment or other device and its environmental interaction.
Any person appointed by the Borough with responsibility to
enforce municipal ordinances; or, any sworn member of the Borough
Police Department.
Either the owner or operator of vehicles appliances, equipment
or devices.
The time interval during which acoustical data are obtained.
The period of observation is determined by the characteristics of
the noise being measured and the instrumentation being used. The period
of observation must be at least as long as the response time of the
instrumentation. The greater the variance in individual sound level,
the longer must be the observation time for a given expected accuracy
of measurement.
Society of Automotive Engineers.
Airborne sound levels are expressed in dB and obtained by
the use of specific frequency-dependent weighting networks, as specified
in the referenced standards. The specific weighting network used must
be indicated by the proper notation. If A-weighting is employed, the
sound level is identified as dB(A).
An instrument, or combination of instruments, which meets
or exceeds the requirements for an ANSI Type S1A or Type S2A Sound
Level Meter.
A noise whose level remains essentially constant (i.e., fluctuations
are less than five dB) during the period of observation is a steady
noise.
Any device, or combination of devices, used for or capable
of being used for transporting persons or property. Vehicles include,
but are not limited to, the following: automobiles, trucks, buses,
motorcycles, motorized bicycles, snowmobiles, scooters, all-terrain
vehicles, go-carts, racers and like devices, farm machinery, industrial
machinery, highway graders, trailers, graders and semitrailers.
A.
Abatement. Any emission of noise from any source in excess of the
limitation established in or pursuant to this article herein described
shall be deemed and is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and
may be abated, in addition to the administrative proceedings, fines
and penalties herein provided. Such abatement may be made by any police
officer or the Ordinance Enforcement Officer, or may be made by order
of the Court of Common Pleas of Lycoming County on complaint or petition
filed on behalf of the Borough.
B.
Nothing in this article shall be constructed to impair any cause
of action, or legal remedy thereof, of any person or the public for
injury or damage arising from the emission or release into the atmosphere
or ground from any source whatever of noise in such place or manner,
or at such levels which may give rise to such cause of action.
C.
The Health Officer and police officers of Muncy Borough shall:
(1)
Be qualified by training and experience to perform the necessary
measurements and procedures required to determine violations of the
provisions of this article;
(2)
File complaints with the Magisterial District Judge to prosecute
violations of this article;
(3)
Investigate complaints of violations of this article and make inspections
and observations of noise conditions; and
(4)
Be authorized to issue a warning to persons considered in violation
of these regulations, a warning which may allow an appropriate time
not to exceed 30 calendar days for correction to bring the offending
vehicle(s), appliance(s), equipment or other device(s) within the
provisions of these regulations before enforcement by prosecution.
The Borough shall:
A.
Have available in convenient form as in a unit the provisions of
this article and the recommended practices, rules, regulations and
standards which have been adopted. A copy of the information sources
shall be kept on file in the Borough offices;
B.
Prepare and maintain record of all orders issued by the Noise Enforcement
Officers and the Appeals Board;
C.
By the Health Officers and police officers of Muncy Borough, issue
all standards, permits, certificates, notices or other matters required
under the provisions of this article and notify all persons concerned
of any decisions rendered and provide such persons with an opportunity
to be heard as herein set forth;
D.
Establish an Advisory Committee to investigate and make recommendations
from time to time to the Borough Council with respect to needed additions
or revisions of this article.
A.
General. No person shall make, permit or cause to be made, any excessive
noise of any kind by crying, calling or shouting, or by means of any
whistle, rattle, bell, gong, clapper, hammer, drum, horn, hand organ,
mechanically operated piano, other musical instrument, wind instrument,
mechanical device, radio, phonograph, sound-amplifying or other similar
electronic device unless said person has obtained a special permit
from the Borough as provided in this article.
B.
Musical instruments. No person shall use or perform on any hand organ
or other musical instrument or device, for pay or in expectation of
payment, in any public way or public open space of the Borough before
8:00 a.m. or after 6:00 p.m. of the day unless said person has obtained
a special permit from the Health Officers and police officers of Muncy
Borough.
C.
Noise from premises. No person owning, or in possession or control
of any building or premises, shall use the same, permit the use of
the same, or rent the same to be used for any business or employment
or residential use, or for any purpose of pleasure or recreation,
if such use shall, by its boisterous nature, disturb or destroy the
peace of the neighborhood as measured at the property line in which
such building or premises is situated, or be dangerous or detrimental
to health.
D.
Equipment noise. It shall be unlawful for any person to use any pile
driver, shovel, hammer, derrick, hoist, tractor, roller or other mechanical
equipment operated by fuel or electric power in building or construction
operations from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. of the following day, except
for emergency work on public improvements, work of public service
utilities, and municipal services unless such equipment has been manufactured
or modified for sound control and meets the provisions of this article.
E.
Noise in handling refuse cans. No person shall make any unnecessary
noise in the handling of ash, trash and garbage cans, either in loading
or unloading, whether full or empty.
F.
Noise in vicinity of hospitals, schools and churches. No person shall
make any unnecessary noise in the vicinity of any hospital or church
during hours of public worship, or school during school hours.
G.
Unlawful to keep noisy animals. No person shall keep, or permit to
be kept, harbor, or otherwise maintain any animal which shall disturb
day or night the quiet of any public street or other public place,
or of any neighborhood. Provided, however, that a noisy animal shall
be defined as one or more animals which makes noises habitually, so
as to constitute annoyance to a person of ordinary sensibilities.
H.
Noise by peddlers. No peddler or other person who plies a trade or
calling of any nature on the streets of the Borough shall use any
horn, bell, or other sound instrument to make any noise tending to
disturb the peace and quiet of the neighborhood, for the purpose of
directing attention to his wares, trade or calling.
I.
Use of horns and other devices on vehicles. No person, operating
any vehicle, other than police, fire, public service or ambulance
operators shall sound any horn, bell, gong, siren, or whistle, except
for the ordinary horn installed on such vehicle by the manufacturer,
or sound any type of horn except when reasonably necessary to prevent
accidents or to otherwise comply with the law of motor vehicles.
J.
Public events. The operational performance standards established
by this article shall not apply to any public performance being conducted
in accordance with provisions of a special permit obtained from the
Health Officers and police officers of Muncy Borough for the conduct
thereof.
K.
Vehicles. No person shall operate day or night either a motor vehicle of a type subject to registration, except in police, fire equipment, ambulances or other government emergency vehicles at any time or under any condition of grade, load, acceleration or declaration in such a manner as to exceed the following noise limits for the category of minor vehicles based on a distance of 50 feet from the center of the lane traveled on within the speed limit specified in this section under test procedures established by § 193-9 of this article.
(1)
This section applies to the total noise from a vehicle or combination
of vehicles and shall not be construed as limiting or precluding the
enforcement of any other provisions of this Code relating to motor
vehicle mufflers for noise control.
(2)
No person shall modify or change the exhaust muffler, intake muffler
or any other noise abatement device of a motor vehicle so that the
noise level is increased above that emitted by the vehicle as originally
manufactured. Procedures used to establish compliance with this subsection
shall be those used to establish compliance of a new motor vehicle
with the requirements of this article.
A.
Any property use established in a zoning district as defined and designated under the provisions of Chapter 286, Zoning, shall be such as to comply with the performance standards governing noise set forth hereinafter for the district in which such use shall be located.
B.
Noise levels shall be measured in terms of the sound level in dBA
using equipment which meets the requirements established by this article.
C.
In all commercial and industrial zoning districts, at no point on the boundary of any residential zoning district shall the sound level of any individual operation or business, or the combined operations of any person, firm or corporation exceed the dBA levels shown below for the zoning district indicated from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. of the following day and all day on Sunday and legal holidays unless otherwise specified, as measured under the test procedures established by § 193-9B of this article.
|
Maximum sound levels dB(A) along district boundaries as
measured by conventional sound level meters on slow response:
| ||
|---|---|---|
|
Residential
|
Commercial/Industrial
| |
|
A-scale levels
| ||
|
_____ dB(A)
|
_____ dB(A)
| |
D.
In commercial zoning districts, all activities involving the production,
processing, cleaning, servicing, testing, repair of materials, goods
or products, or any property use shall conform with the performance
standards stated above, provided that performance standards shall,
in every case, be applied at the boundaries of the lot on which any
such activities take place, except in such cases where the maximum
permitted sound levels may be exceeded at a more distant point.
E.
In residential zoning districts, any property use shall conform with
the performance standards stated above for residential district boundaries,
provided that performance standards shall, in every case, be applied
at the boundaries of the lot on which such use is established, except
in such cases where the maximum permitted sound levels may be exceeded
at a more distant point.
A.
Test procedures to determine whether maximum noises emitted by new motor vehicles sold or offered for sale or lease meet the noise limits stated in § 193-7L of this article shall be in substantial conformity with standards and recommended practice established by the SAE, Incorporated, and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as well as the United States Environmental Protection Agency and such other and further standards as may be propounded in the Code of Recommended Practices of the Borough.
B.
Test procedures to determine whether maximum noises emitted by powered equipment or powered hand tools, sold or leased, or offered for sale or lease, meet the noise limits stated in § 193-7L of this article shall be in substantial conformity with Standards and Recommended Practices established by the SAE, Incorporated and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection as well as the United States Environmental Protection Agency and such other and further standards as may be propounded in the Code of Recommended Practices of the Borough.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $600; and in default of payment, to imprisonment
for a term not to exceed 30 days. Every day that a violation of this
article continues shall constitute a separate offense.
[Adopted 5-6-2003 by Ord. No. 473]
This article shall be known as the Muncy Borough "Engine Suppression
Brake Ordinance."
The Borough Council of the Borough of Muncy, Lycoming County,
Pennsylvania, finds as a fact that the operation of an engine brake
or an engine suppression device or a compression brake (sometimes
referred to as "Jake" brakes) on a gasoline-powered or diesel-powered
motor vehicle not equipped with exhaust mufflers, or equipped with
defective or modified exhaust mufflers, so as to create or cause excessive
noise through the use of said engine brake or engine-suppression device
or a compression brake, adversely affects the public health, safety
and welfare of the residents of the Borough of Muncy and, therefore,
is a nuisance in fact.
No gasoline-powered or diesel-powered motor vehicle shall be
operated on the streets, roads, alleys or highways listed below within
the Borough of Muncy, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, utilizing, in
said operation, an engine brake, engine-suppression device or compression
brake, without exhaust mufflers, or with defective or modified exhaust
mufflers permitting or causing excessive noise to be created by said
motor vehicle.
A.
The following streets shall be subject to the provisions of this
article:
(1)
All streets and alleys within the Borough of Muncy.
B.
The Borough Council of Muncy Borough may amend the designated streets
from time to time by a duly adopted resolution.
C.
Signage notifying the public of the prohibitions contained herein
shall be placed at appropriate sites designated by Borough Council
in consultation with the Chief of Police, and if required, with the
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
This article shall not apply to emergency vehicles being operated
in an emergency mode or emergency driving situations requiring the
utilization of an engine brake to protect the safety and property
of the residents of Muncy Borough, other motor vehicle operators,
pedestrians, and the operator and passengers of the motor vehicle
involved in said emergency situations.
Any person, firm, corporation or organization violating any
of the provisions of this article shall, upon summary conviction before
a Magisterial District Judge having jurisdiction, be sentenced to
pay a fine of not less than $50 or more than $300 and costs of prosecution,
and in default of the payment thereof, shall be sentenced to undergo
imprisonment in the Lycoming County Jail for a period not to exceed
10 days.
