(a) All drilling and production equipment installed or operated upon any drill site shall be so constructed, operated and maintained that no noise, vibration, odor, or other harmful or annoying substances or effects therefrom which can be eliminated or diminished by the use of modern and approved types of equipment silencers or greater care, shall ever be permitted to result from operations on any drill site to the injury or annoyance of persons in the vicinity of such drill site. Proven technological and mechanical improvements in methods of drilling and production and in the type of equipment and methods will reduce noise, vibration, odors or the harmful effects of annoying substances.
(b) The engines used in connection with the drilling of any oil well or any production equipment shall be equipped with an exhaust muffler, or an exhaust muffler box, sufficient to suppress noise and to prevent the escape of obnoxious gases, fumes, sparks, ignited carbon, or soot. Type and design of any muffler or muffler box shall be approved by the chief building inspector and by the fire chief or his authorized representative.
(c) At an urbanized drilling site, the operation of oil field production equipment shall not increase the ambient noise level at any given time by more than three decibels in any octave band, when measured at a distance of 150 feet from the oil field production equipment in question. The ambient noise level, for the purpose of this section, shall be the average of sound level meter ratings taken consecutively at any given time from four or more diametrically opposite positions within an area of not more than 500 feet nor less than 200 feet from the oil field production equipment in question; all such readings to be taken at a distance and in a manner so as to obtain the surrounding noise level as distinguished from the noise level produced by the oil field production equipment. However, if the ambient noise level is less than 70 decibels, the production equipment shall not generate a noise level in excess of 70 decibels measured at a distance of 150 feet from such equipment.
(d) At a non-urbanized drilling site, the operation of oil field production equipment shall not generate a noise level in excess of 80 decibels at a distance of 150 feet from said production equipment.
(Prior Code, § 5-176; Ord. of 3-11-1980)