10 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 8 cities in Riverside County, California.
Verified from official government sources
In unincorporated Riverside County, Ordinance No. 847 sets a stricter nighttime sound limit from 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. For most residential designations the exterior maximum drops to 45 dBA at night versus 55 dBA during the day, measured at the property line of an occupied property.
Riverside County Ordinance No. 847 exempts private construction near homes only if it stops nighttime work. Within a quarter-mile of an inhabited dwelling, construction may not occur 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. (June through September) or 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. (October through May).
Riverside County Ordinance No. 878 makes it a public nuisance to keep a 'noisy animal' whose excessive, unrelenting or habitual barking, howling or crying disturbs neighbors in the unincorporated areas. It uses a warning-then-abatement-hearing process run by the Department of Animal Services rather than a fixed decibel limit.
Riverside County Ordinance No. 847 exempts routine property maintenance such as lawnmowers and leaf blowers from its noise limits as long as the work is done between 7:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. There is no county-wide gas-blower ban or specific decibel cap for leaf blowers.
Riverside County Ordinance No. 847 prohibits sound amplifying equipment and live music entirely from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. in the unincorporated areas. At all other times, the sound may not be audible to the human ear more than 200 feet from the equipment or music.
Riverside County does not set decibel limits on aircraft operations (federally controlled), but its General Plan and Airport Land Use Commission manage aircraft noise through CNEL contours. New residential is generally prohibited within the 60 dB CNEL contour, and noise-sensitive uses are discouraged above 65 CNEL.
Industrial and stationary noise sources in unincorporated Riverside County must meet Ordinance No. 847's Table 1 limits (Light Industrial 75/55, Heavy Industrial 75/75 dBA). The General Plan Noise Element adds a stationary-source standard of 45 dBA (10-min Leq) at night and 65 dBA by day at sensitive uses.
Riverside County Ordinance No. 847 sets exterior maximum sound levels (dBA Lmax) by General Plan land use. Most residential designations allow 55 dBA from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and 45 dBA from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.; commercial 65/55; light industrial 75/55; heavy industrial 75/75.
Outdoor live music and amplified performance in unincorporated Riverside County are regulated under Ordinance No. 847. They are prohibited from 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. and, at other times, must not be audible to the human ear more than 200 feet from the source. Events can apply for an exception.
On-road motor vehicle noise in unincorporated Riverside County is governed mainly by the California Vehicle Code, which the county's own Noise Element acknowledges preempts local regulation. Ordinance No. 847 still regulates off-highway vehicles (96/101 dBA) and vehicle sound systems within the county.
8 cities in Riverside County have their own noise ordinances rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
10 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
9 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
9 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
9 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
9 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
10 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
10 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
9 verified rules • Aircraft Noise, Amplified Music & Events
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