671 

SUBCHAPTER I—AIRPORTS 

PART 150—AIRPORT NOISE 
COMPATIBILITY PLANNING 

Subpart A—General Provisions 

Sec. 
150.1

Scope and purpose. 

150.3

Applicability. 

150.5

Limitations of this part. 

150.7

Definitions. 

150.9

Designation of noise systems. 

150.11

Identification of land uses. 

150.13

Incorporations by reference. 

Subpart B—Development of Noise Expo-

sure Maps and Noise Compatibility 
Programs 

150.21

Noise exposure maps and related de-

scriptions. 

150.23

Noise compatibility programs. 

Subpart C—Evaluations and Determina-

tions of Effects of Noise Compatibility 
Programs 

150.31

Preliminary review: Acknowledg-

ments. 

150.33

Evaluation of programs. 

150.35

Determinations; publications; 

effectivity. 

A

PPENDIX

A 

TO

P

ART

150—N

OISE

E

XPOSURE

 

M

APS

 

A

PPENDIX

B 

TO

P

ART

150—N

OISE

C

OMPAT

-

IBILITY

P

ROGRAMS

 

A

UTHORITY

: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 44715, 

47101, 47501–47504. 

S

OURCE

: Docket No. 18691, 49 FR 49269, Dec. 

18, 1984, unless otherwise noted. 

Subpart A—General Provisions 

§ 150.1 Scope and purpose. 

This part prescribes the procedures, 

standards, and methodology governing 
the development, submission, and re-
view of airport noise exposure maps 
and airport noise compatibility pro-
grams, including the process for evalu-
ating and approving or disapproving 
those programs. It prescribes single 
systems for—(a) measuring noise at 
airports and surrounding areas that 
generally provides a highly reliable re-
lationship between projected noise ex-
posure and surveyed reaction of people 
to noise; and (b) determining exposure 
of individuals to noise that results 

from the operations of an airport. This 
part also identifies those land uses 
which are normally compatible with 
various levels of exposure to noise by 
individuals. It provides technical as-
sistance to airport operators, in con-
junction with other local, State, and 
Federal authorities, to prepare and 
execute appropriate noise compat-
ibility planning and implementation 
programs. 

§ 150.3 Applicability. 

This part applies to the airport noise 

compatibility planning activities of 
the operators of ‘‘public use airports,’’ 
including heliports, as that term is 
used in section 47501(2) as amended (49 
U.S.C. 47501 

et seq.

) and as defined in 

section 47102(17) of 49 U.S.C. 

[Doc. No. FAA–2004–19158, 69 FR 57625, Sept. 
24, 2004] 

§ 150.5 Limitations of this part. 

(a) Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 47501 

et seq., 

this part provides for airport noise 
compatibility planning and land use 
programs necessary to the purposes of 
those provisions. No submittal of a 
map, or approval or disapproval, in 
whole or part, of any map or program 
submitted under this part is a deter-
mination concerning the acceptability 
or unacceptability of that land use 
under Federal, State, or local law. 

(b) Approval of a noise compatibility 

program under this part is neither a 
commitment by the FAA to financially 
assist in the implementation of the 
program, nor a determination that all 
measures covered by the program are 
eligible for grant-in-aid funding from 
the FAA. 

(c) Approval of a noise compatibility 

program under this part does not by 
itself constitute an FAA implementing 
action. A request for Federal action or 
approval to implement specific noise 
compatibility measures may be re-
quired, and an FAA decision on the re-
quest may require an environmental 
assessment of the proposed action, pur-
suant to the National Environmental 
Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4332 

et seq.

) and 

guidelines. 

672 

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition) 

§ 150.7 

(d) Acceptance of a noise exposure 

map does not constitute an FAA deter-
mination that any specific parcel of 
land lies within a particular noise con-
tour. Responsibility for interpretation 
of the effects of noise contours upon 
subjacent land uses, including the rela-
tionship between noise contours and 
specific properties, rests with the spon-
sor or with other state or local govern-
ment. 

[Doc. No. 18691, 49 FR 49269, Dec. 18, 1984, as 
amended by Amdt. 150–4, 69 FR 57625, Sept. 
24, 2004] 

§ 150.7 Definitions. 

As used in this part, unless the con-

text requires otherwise, the following 
terms have the following meanings. 

Airport 

means any public use airport, 

including heliports, as defined by the 
ASNA Act, including: (a) Any airport 
which is used or to be used for public 
purposes, under the control of a public 
agency, the landing area of which is 
publicly owned; (b) any privately 
owned reliever airport; and (c) any pri-
vately owned airport which is deter-
mined by the Secretary to enplane an-
nually 2,500 or more passengers and re-
ceive scheduled passenger service of 
aircraft, which is used or to be used for 
public purposes. 

Airport noise compatibility program 

and 

program 

mean that program, and all re-

visions thereto, reflected in documents 
(and revised documents) developed in 
accordance with appendix B of this 
part, including the measures proposed 
or taken by the airport operator to re-
duce existing noncompatible land uses 
and to prevent the introduction of ad-
ditional noncompatible land uses with-
in the area. 

Airport Operator 

means, the operator 

of an airport as defined in the ASNA 
Act. 

ASNA Act 

means 49 U.S.C. 47501 

et seq. 

Average sound level 

means the level, 

in decibels, of the mean-square, A- 
weighted sound pressure during a speci-
fied period, with reference to the 
square of the standard reference sound 
pressure of 20 micropascals. 

Compatible land use 

means the use of 

land that is identified under this part 
as normally compatible with the out-
door noise environment (or an ade-
quately attenuated noise level reduc-

tion for any indoor activities involved) 
at the location because the yearly day- 
night average sound level is at or below 
that identified for that or similar use 
under appendix A (Table 1) of this part. 

Day-night average sound level 

(DNL) 

means the 24-hour average sound level, 
in decibels, for the period from mid-
night to midnight, obtained after the 
addition of ten decibels to sound levels 
for the periods between midnight and 7 
a.m., and between 10 p.m., and mid-
night, local time. The symbol for DNL 
is L

dn

. 

Noise exposure map 

means a scaled, 

geographic depiction of an airport, its 
noise contours, and surrounding area 
developed in accordance with section 
A150.1 of Appendix A of this part, in-
cluding the accompanying documenta-
tion setting forth the required descrip-
tions of forecast aircraft operations at 
that airport during the fifth calendar 
year (or later) beginning after submis-
sion of the map, together with the 
ways, if any, those operations will af-
fect the map (including noise contours 
and the forecast land uses). 

Noise level reduction 

(NLR) means the 

amount of noise level reduction in 
decibels achieved through incorpora-
tion of noise attenuation (between out-
door and indoor levels) in the design 
and construction of a structure. 

Noncompatible land use 

means the use 

of land that is identified under this 
part as normally not compatible with 
the outdoor noise environment (or an 
adequately attenuated noise reduction 
level for the indoor activities involved 
at the location) because the yearly 
day-night average sound level is above 
that identified for that or similar use 
under appendix A (Table 1) of this part. 

Regional Airports Division Manager 

means the Airports Division Manager 
having responsibility for the geo-
graphic area in which the airport in 
question is located. 

Restriction affecting flight procedures 

means any requirement, limitation, or 
other action affecting the operation of 
aircraft, in the air or on the ground. 

Sound exposure level 

means the level, 

in decibels, of the time integral of 
squared A-weighted sound pressure 
during a specified period or event, with 
reference to the square of the standard 
reference sound pressure of 20