Environmental Noise Impact Assessment and Mitigation for Water Well Drilling
Typical sound levels of water well drilling equipment exceed 100 dBA and 110 dBC during normal operations. Noise surveys, including detail frequency spectra measurements of all equipment operating on the drill site, are required for accurate computer modeling of the predicted off-site noise level impacts. The utilization of a beamforming array for acoustical imagining surveying of the water well drilling noise sources allows for improved source noise level and frequency identification.
The establishment and documentation of the drill site’s ambient sound levels prior to the well drilling operations are required for the compliance verification and noise mitigation system design.
Computer noise prediction modeling meeting ISO 9613 Standards is utilized to evaluate off-site drilling noise impacts and to establish the noise mitigation systems requirements to meet regulatory compliance levels. For accurate noise impact modeling, the drill site and adjacent area’s topography, land cover, and structures are modeled the account for noise blocking, reflection and absorption at any given location.
With the development of site specific noise impact models, noise mitigation systems can be evaluated to determine the most cost effective system(s) required to meet regulatory compliance levels.
In designing temporary noise mitigation systems for water well drilling operations, many factors need to be considered, including the mitigation system design for low frequency noise. Other considerations include access and egress to the equipment for operator’s safety, maintaining line of sight for the operators, minimization of heat gain, and maintenance of air quality and worker noise exposure.
