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5.2.4 Ordinance on the Prevention of Noise from Sports Facilities (18th
Federal Immission Control Ordinance)
The Ordinance on the Prevention of Noise from Sports Facilities (18th Federal Immission Control Ordinance from 1991) (available in German) is applicable to the construction, nature and operation of sports facilities unless they are subject to licensing pursuant to § 4 of the Federal Immission Control Act. Sports facilities are defined as stationary facilities for exercising operated for this purpose (this does not include e.g. children's playgrounds or recreational sports activities on paths and in open land). Sports facilities also cover nearby facilities with a close spatial and operation relation, like parking lots or restaurants.
The 18th Federal Immission Control Ordinance provides immission guide values for the construction and operation of sports facilities which shall not be exceeded (table 5/1).
Single short-time peak values may not exceed the immission guide values by more than 30 dB(A) during the day and more than 20 dB(A) at
night.
Furthermore, immission values of 35 dB(A) at daytime and 25 dB(A) at nighttime are designated for habitable rooms in dwellings which are connected with sports facilities (e.g. within housing complexes). Single peak values may not exceed the last-mentioned values by more than 10
dB(A).
The determined periods are as follows: Daytime covers the period between 6 am and 10 pm on weekdays and between 7 am and 10 pm on Sundays and holidays. Nighttime is everything else. Rest periods are from 6 am to 8 am and from 8 pm to 10 pm on weekdays. On Sundays and holidays, the rest period is from 7 am to 9 am and from 8 pm to 10 pm plus the two hours from 1 pm to 3 pm. This noon rest must only be considered if sports facilities are used more than 4 hours on Sundays and holidays between 9 am and 8 pm.
| Uses |
at daytime |
at nighttime |
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outside the rest periods
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within the rest
periods
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| Commercial areas |
65 |
60 |
50 |
| Core areas, village areas, mixed areas |
60 |
55 |
45 |
| General residential areas, small housing estates |
55 |
50 |
40 |
| Purely residential areas |
50 |
45 |
35 |
| Spa areas, rest homes, hospitals |
45 |
45 |
35 |
Table 5/1: Immission guide values in dB(A) pursuant to the 18th Federal Immission Control
Ordinance
Exceptions to the regulations and orders can be made if the noise from sports facilities is superposed by permanent and predominant extraneous sounds. The competent authority can also fix hours of operation (except for open-air swimming pools and school sport facilities). Hours of operation shall not be fixed if the immission values are very rarely exceeded. Exceedances are rare if they occur on a maximum of 18 calendar days per year.
Immission guide values in the context of rare events may be exceeded by at most 10 dB(A), provided that a level of 70 dB(A) is by no means exceeded outside the rest period at daytime, that of 65 dB(A) within the rest period and that of 55 dB(A) at night. Single short-time peak values may not exceed the immission guide values by more than 20 dB(A) during the day and more than 10 dB(A) at night.
An annex to the ordinance contains the determination and assessment procedure. What must be considered besides the noise from the sports facility and its equipment is, if necessary, traffic noises from public circulation areas outside the facility provided that the traffic volume can be assigned to the facility.
Rating level and maximum level of single peak noises are determined on the basis of intensity, length and frequency of the noises. The assessment is made for the different periods (outside or within rest periods), during the night for the most unfavourable hour. If different emissions occur within an assessment period, the distribution of the occurring noises must be considered. The impulsive characteristics of noises (e.g. the bouncing of balls) are considered with an addition to the rating level. Sounds with discrete components and information incorporation (e.g. loudspeaker announcements) result in an addition of 3 dB(A) or 6 dB(A) to the rating level due to their increased nuisance effect.
Rating levels can be both calculated (with reference to VDI guidelines 2714 and 2720-1) and measured.
If the rating level is measured, it must be reduced by 3 dB(A) when compared with the immission guide values. This accounts for measurement instabilities in favour of the operator of an installation.
If necessary, exterior living areas like terraces, balconies and home gardens shall also be considered in the assessment.
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Fig.
5/3: Examples
of sports facilities |
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