New Study on Airport Noise Moves Forward

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Yesterday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) green-lighted a study by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to reexamine the current metric used to determine acceptable aircraft noise pollution. Rep. Jan Schakowsky has been a leader in the effort to get the FAA to review the current 65 decibel Day-Night Average Sound Level (DNL) metric.

“For almost a decade, I have heard the concerns of my constituents about the level of noise from plane traffic near O’Hare airport. While I have worked to secure soundproofing for homes, schools, and businesses facing the constant barrage of noise, many neighborhoods have not been eligible for that assistance because they fall below the 65 DNL metric,” said Schakowsky. “Those complaints have increased as the O’Hare Modernization Plan has altered runways and flight approaches and departures. OMB’s approval of this study means that the noise faced by my constituents will be reevaluated to determine whether they are eligible for sound insulation. I will monitor the FAA study closely and work to ensure that all of my constituents struggling with unacceptable airplane noise have the resources needed to address that issue.”

Rep. Schakowsky has long-urged a reevaluation of the 65 DNL standard – which measures noise over a 24-hour period rather than during the more concentrated time period of air traffic from 6am to 10 pm. In early 2009, Rep. Schakowsky sent a letter requesting a reexamination of the 65 DNL standard and convened a meeting with the local community on the issue later in the year. The FAA agreed that a systematic review was necessary. After more than four years of inaction, Rep. Schakowsky and Rep. Mike Quigley reiterated that request. Over the next 18 months, Rep. Schakowsky has engaged in regular communication with the FAA and other entities urging action to reduce air traffic noise – including calling for a dedicated O’Hare noise complaint line and for new public hearings and a new environmental impact study of the O’Hare Modernization Plan in response to questions raised over the hearing process and noise levels that exceeded expectations.

Rep. Quigley, who took over representation of O’Hare in 2013, is owed a special thanks for getting this study through the OMB review process.