Gloucester Township Council Introduces Proposed Noise Ordinance

GLOUCESTER TOWNSHIP, NJ — Gloucester Township residents may soon notice their neighborhoods becoming a lot more quiet.

Calling excessive sound and vibration a “serious threat to public health, welfare, safety and quality of life, Gloucester Township Council introduced a proposed ordinance to cap noise levels throughout the township Monday night.

Residences and residential portions of multi-use properties would be required to keep their decibel levels below 55 decibels between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m., and below 45 decibels between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., and requires commercial businesses, public service facilities and non-residential portions of multi-use properties to cap decibel levels at 55 decibels 24 hours a day.

These standards apply to outdoor use. Inside, those numbers drop to 45, 35 and 50, respectively.

Those using sound producing device must cap the level at 3 decibels between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. during the week, and between 11 p.m. and 9 a.m. on the weekend. The devices are permitted to reach 6 decibels at all other times.

Industrialnoisecontrol.com’s Comparative Examples of Noise Chart sets 30 decibels as “very quiet” and compares it to a quiet rural area. Forty decibels is comparable to a bird call, 50 is compared to a conversation you would have in your home, and 60 decibels is comparative to background music or a conversation you might have in a restaurant or office.

The proposed ordinance also says no construction and demolition work may take place between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m. on weekdays or between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. on weekends or federal holidays, except for in emergency situations.

Motorized snow removal equipment will be required to have a muffler, all burglar alarms must terminate after five minutes of continuous sound and 15 minutes of intermittent sound and portable sound producing devices can’t be audible from 50 feet in any direction between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m., and 25 feet between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Pet owners are also expected to control the amount of noise their animals make, so that it doesn’t have a negative impact on neighbors.

Motorcycles must have mufflers, and personal or commercial vehicle music can’t be heard 25 feet in any direction between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. or 50 feet between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m.

Anyone who violates the ordinance would be subject to a $2,000 fine.

Council unanimously approved the proposal on introduction with a 5-0 vote. Councilwomen Andrea Stubbs and Tracey Trotto were absent due to illness.