Industrial noise is Merced's most strictly codified noise topic. MMC 20.12.030(C)(1) caps industrial noise at 70 dBA (7 a.m.-9 p.m.) and 60 dBA (9 p.m.-7 a.m.) beyond the property line, bans noise past residentially-abutting lines from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m., and requires a noise-mitigation plan before permits if exceeded. Vibration and odor limits also apply.
Merced's Zoning Code sets enforceable performance standards for uses in industrial (I-L, I-H) zones. Under MMC 20.12.030(C)(1)(a): 'No operation or activity shall transmit any noise exceeding 70 dBA between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. and 60 dBA between 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. beyond the property line. Any uses abutting residential zoning shall not transmit any noise between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. beyond the property line.' If a proposed operation would exceed the limit, the applicant must submit a noise-mitigation plan to obtain building permits. MMC 20.12.030(C)(1)(b) allows the review authority, as part of a permit, to grant narrow exceptions for infrequent noise, for noise at or beyond the property line that is exceeded by an existing exempt noise, or for a pre-existing use that cannot conform even after applying best-available control technology. The same section adds further property-line performance limits: no ground vibration discernible by human senses for more than three minutes per hour (MMC 20.12.030(C)(2)), no objectionable odor or noxious gas at the property line (C)(3), and full compliance with air-quality laws (C)(4). Industrial development next to homes also requires a 25-foot landscaped buffer yard with a 6-foot masonry wall (MMC 20.12.030(B)). These are the city's strongest, most quantitative noise controls.
An industrial use that would exceed the dBA limits cannot get building permits without an approved noise-mitigation plan (MMC 20.12.030(C)(1)). Ongoing exceedance, or violation of permit noise conditions, is a zoning/code-enforcement matter that can jeopardize the permit. Vibration and odor exceedances at the property line are likewise prohibited.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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