New city leaders get lesson on coveted Long Beach Airport noise ordinance

The city has failed multiple attempts at regulating aircraft noise. It has undergone years of airlines challenging the rules in courts, and finally, a 1995 ordinance was exempted from federal law otherwise severely restricting the ability of cities to control airport decibel levels.

In a nutshell, it’s the story of the Long Beach Airport Noise Compatibility Ordinance, which the City Council heard in a study session Tuesday as officials weigh the airport’s future.

Since the Federal Aircraft Noise Compatibility Act was passed in 1990, no other city has been successful in securing a law as stringent as Long Beach’s, Assistant City Attorney Michael Mais told the council.

“It’s not like any other ordinance we have on the books,” said Mais.

The study session was called by Councilman Al Austin as JetBlue Airways Corp., the airport’s main commercial tenant, have expressed interest in accommodating international travel. Such a move would require opening a customs facility, a process needing the approval of the federal government and the city.

Austin said if JetBlue or any other carrier want a customs facility, the council should proceed with “extreme caution,” if at all.

The airport noise ordinance is an asset, he added.

“Our airport is an asset as well,” said Austin. “But our neighborhoods define our city. We need to be very clear on that.”

Both Long Beach Airport Executive Director Bryant Francis and JetBlue representatives have said there are no plans to change the law effectively limiting flights to 41 commercial and 25 commuter flights per day.

In operation, the noise ordinance works like this: Two monitoring stations near the airport measure decibel levels, and if the rules are broken, pilots or their employers must pay fees for every infraction. Violators are hit with a warning on their first transgression, but subsequent fines can rise up to $300.

JetBlue pays more as a result of a legal agreement reached between the airline and city about 12 years ago.

The agreement, called a consent decree, can be costly for the carrier. In 2011, JetBlue paid $555,000 to the Long Beach Public Library Foundation as a result of the decree, according to an internal airline report.

 

During the day, arriving aircraft must generate no more than 101.5 decibels of noise. Departing aircraft can make up to 102.5 decibels.

From 6-7 a.m., and between 10 and 11 p.m., the decibel restriction drops to about 90. The limit lowers to 79 in the overnight hours.

An airport official has previously described 90 decibels as like a blender in a home and 100 decibels similar to a diesel truck rolling by a house.

Noise generated by military aircraft, such as the F/A-18 Hornets conducting training operations out of the airport last weekend, is excluded from the ordinance.

Many residents spoke in support of the ordinance during public comment.
Former Councilwoman Rae Gabelich, a vocal protector of the law, said officials should be wary of unintended consequences of changing the rules.

Earlier, Mais noted the ordinance has never been changed due to “lurking fear” the city could lose its exemptions.

“It’s so important to do your due diligence,” Gabelich said.

(Eric Bradley - Long Beach Press Telegram)