Tehama County, CA Noise Ordinances: Aircraft Noise (2026)

Aircraft noise in Tehama County comes mainly from two public airports, the Red Bluff Municipal Airport and the Corning Municipal Airport, both owned and operated by their respective cities and located within those city limits, but their noise contours extend into the surrounding unincorporated county. Airport noise is managed through the Tehama County General Plan Noise Element and the Tehama County Comprehensive Airport Land Use Plan (TCACLUP), with contours measured in Community Noise Equivalent Level (CNEL) as defined in Title 21 of the California Code of Regulations. The General Plan states that the local standard for noise levels near existing airports in Tehama County is 60 dBA Ldn for residential areas and other sensitive receptors, and that the maximum noise exposure normally acceptable for residential areas is 60 dBA CNEL. Some land-use regulation is required under the traffic pattern and within the 55 CNEL contour, with a preference for restricting or prohibiting residential development beneath the traffic pattern. Table 9-4 (Impact of Airport Noise on Land Use) sets the compatibility of residential, public, commercial, industrial, agricultural and recreational uses across CNEL ranges from 50-55 up to 70-75 dBA. For the Corning airport, identified contours (55, 60 and 65 CNEL) extend roughly 500 feet east and west of the runway centerline and 1,500 feet beyond each runway end. New development in these areas is reviewed for compliance with the TCACLUP and may require noise attenuation.