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Hannah Knorr
Lauren Ronsse
Architectural Acoustics
6 December 2012
From past Humming to Future Buzzing: The History of the US Noise Problem
We humans live in a grossly noisy world. We have planes, trains, dance clubs, heck, our
ears may be battling HVAC rumbling, appliance buzzing, and traffic noise simply by sitting
alone in a quiet room. Usually, noise is simply brushed off as a necessary annoyance. Very
few people realize how debilitating noise exposure can be. An article published in Noise and
Health compiled research from the past quarter century that supported that living in an
environment with an excessive amount of noise can bring a bevy of physical and financial
repercussions in the future such as hearing loss, cardiovascular distress, hormonal stress and
even personal property depreciation (Ising and Kruppa). Fortunately, science has found a few
ways to combat this problem and has been persistent enough to make the government follow suit.
Over the past century, organizations such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have worked to regulate and
reduce workplace noise through a system of lawmaking, inspection, and penalty that has bled
into other anti-noise directives such as airplane noise regulation and community noise regulation.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a division of the United
States Department of Labor that deals with the research, creation, and enforcement of workplace
related hazards such as excessive noise, harsh chemicals, and heavy equipment. In 2009, OSHA
published a journal tracing its history back to its creation which became official in April 28,
1971, as part of the Williams-Steiger Occupational Safety and Health Act that set the first

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official government standards for workplace safety and health conditions. On May 29, they
published their first standards package as part of the Federal Register; however, it was not until
August 27 of the same year that they were able to enforce these conditions as they had to give
companies a ninety day grace period to review the new standards and adjust their conditions
accordingly (Reflections on OSHAs History). Within these standards were the first OSHA
noise standards. They required that no employee be exposed to a noise level 115 decibels or
more for more than fifteen minutes in a single workday. The standard also required employers to
reduce overall noise exposure by either making engineering revisionssuch as placing a barrier
between the noise source and employeeor offering protective headgearearmuffs or earplugs.
(Interestingly enough, this was not actually the first United States occupational noise regulation
published. That was enacted in 1969 under the Department of Labors Walsh-Healey Public
Contracts Act that called for hearing protection, but only applied to companies directly under
contract with the federal government.) James McGill summarized more early noise regulations in
an online article. For the following ten years after its institution, OSHA entered a period of
research and debate about lowering minimum sound levels from 90 to 85 decibels and whether
they should entreaty engineering/administrative modifications or protective devices as the
principal defense against noise. Then, in 1981, OSHA published its Hearing Conservation
Amendment which officially reduced minimum noise levels to 85 decibels and set specific
requirements for company-offered hearing protection gear. Also, it sanctioned the first
requirement for employers to perform regular hearing tests in order to monitor how effective
their noise protective measures were proving (McGill). Since then, OSHA has constantly
evaluated and revised its noise standards based upon current research in order to best protect

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employee hearing. Currently, OSHA describes appropriate sound level exposure with a graph
published in all standards handbooks editions:

This graph was appropriated in April 1991 in in the OSHA standard 1910.95(a) based upon
levels taken over multiple octave bands and applied to an A-weighted decibel sound level to
simulate human hearing levels.
In order to legalize new or revised standards, a healthy body of research must first
precede it. OSHA is the primary enforcer and lawmaker for all occupational noise standards;
however, they actually do not do a lot of their own noise research. In 2008, OSHA signed an
official alliance with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)a
division of the United States Center for Disease Controland the National Hearing
Conservation Association (NCHA). Like OSHA, NIOSH was formed by the 1971 Occupational
Safety and Health Act. They deal with conducting research and making recommendations for
new health and safety standard while also setting the guidelines for successful hearing
conservation programs. To add a third dimension, he NHCA handles the educational and internal

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communication aspects of the noise field. Their mission statement outlines who they are, what
their history is, and why they exist:
We are good people sharing a common visionpreventing [noise-induced
hearing loss]. NHCA's members reflect the cross-functional nature of hearing
conservation, with expertise in various areas. NHCA was formed in June of 1976,
at that time designated as the Hearing Conservation Association, and incorporated
in the state of Florida on July 8, 1976. The organization changed its name to the
National Hearing Conservation Association in 1981The Association was
created to provide a forum where others of similar persuasion could share
information and gain increased insights regarding occupational hearing
conservation. (NCHA Mission)
Basically, they are the melting pot of audiology/any hearing conservation-orientated
person/company/organization. The general simplified process of creating a new noise standard
can be outlined through each association. First, professionals meet and discuss their ideas
through the NCHA. Then, they contact NIOSH to support their ideas by running experiments in
NIOSH research labs or just funding their experiment in general. Finally, if the newly researched
idea adjusts or crates a new sound standard, NIOSH contacts OSHA and discuss it before making
it a part of their official standards and enforcing it in all workplaces under their jurisdiction.
Occasionally, a private company will conduct the research independently then report their
findings directly to OSHA. New research can be submitted and then a new standard can be
petitioned to the main point of contact in the Department of Labor. For OSHA, this is currently
David Schmidt.

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Finally, noise is not only a problem in the workplace. Noise pollution can be found
almost anywhere unless measures are taken to prevent it. While OSHA enforces noise standards
in occupational fields, it was the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that was
first required to fix everyday noise problems. Noise regulation itself began in 1968 with the
Aircraft Noise Abatement Act that forced the FAA to coordinate with the EPA to find and
enforce tolerable noise levels for airplanes. True noise regulation came to a head in 1972 with
the passing of the Noise Control Act which explicitly stated that the EPA will be the agency in
charge of setting and enforcing noise standards for the entire country and the Quiet Communities
Act in 1978 that set standards for lowering overall noise in communities. So, the EPA set up the
Office of Noise Abatement and Control to deal with all issues pertaining to sound. However, this
office was slowly phased out beginning in 1981 and was basically dissolved by 1982 despite the
fact that The Noise Act was never repealed. They are technically still in effect; they just remain
largely unfunded by federal money. Instead, noise control has fallen to local/regional
organizations. Today, almost all urban environments have a set of noise standards to follow that
were created by a local enforcing government.
In conclusion, noise is a rampant problem in the worlds of yesterday, today and
tomorrow, but many federal and local governments and organizations are constantly working to
improve noisy conditions through research, regulation, and enforcement of certain standards in
both occupational and daily life. The topic of noise is relevant today because as technology
develops, we are simply adding to the noise of our everyday world. When noise regulation
began, it was almost unheard of to have to worry about loud noises outside certain workplaces,
but today we must worry about high sound levels while simply walking down the street. Noise
control and prevention is a constantly growing field working tirelessly to overcome the

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cacophony of the modern world. Could you imagine a world where it would be considered a
hazard to not constantly wear hearing conservation gear or to not be able to have simple and
clear a conversation aloud? Without noise control and prevention regulations, this cruel fate
could have already descended upon us.

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Works Cited/Referenced
Ising H, Kruppa B. Health effects caused by Noise : Evidence in the literature from the past 25
Years. Noise Health 2004;6:5-13
McGill, James. "The History of OSHA Noise Standard." EHow. Demand Media, 18 Dec. 2009.
Web. 06 Dec. 2012.
"National Hearing Conservation Association Mission." National Hearing Conservation
Association. NHCA, n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2012.
"Reflections on OSHA's History." OSHA.gov. US Department of Labor: OSHA, Jan. 2009. Web.
6 Dec. 2012.