Sandoval County, NM Noise Ordinances: Decibel Limits (2026)

Sandoval County's only quantified noise standard sits inside the Sand and Gravel Mining Ordinance at Section 10(1), which every mining special use rezoning must satisfy. Before rezoning, an operator submits a Sound and Vibration Mitigation Plan to the Director of County Development describing every significant noise and vibration source, proposed abatement measures, and the predicted sound level out to a half-mile radius. Once operating, the mine may not let any property-line noise source, impulse or continuous, exceed the allowable A-weighted level set by land use: 70 dBA next to single-family or multi-family residential, mobile homes, schools, churches, hospitals, nursing homes, and offices or commercial buildings, rising to 75 dBA next to industrial, utility, agricultural, or undeveloped public land, with the more restrictive figure controlling in mixed-use areas.

Where ambient background sound already exceeds those baselines, non-blasting noise still cannot exceed the property boundary by more than 10 dB(A) over background in a residential zone or 16 dB(A) over background everywhere else. and on New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. All readings are taken at the mining property line following current ANSI procedures while the source is operating.