New policy focuses on commercial and industrial noise
A new South Australian noise policy is set to come into effect from 31 October.
The new policy, which will operate under the Environment Protection Act 1993, has been developed after extensive review and will replace the Environment Protection (Noise) Policy 2007.
The Environment Protection (Commercial and Industrial Noise) Policy 2023 will continue to protect human health from the impacts of commercial and industrial noise by providing an updated legal framework for the assessment of a wide range of commercial and industrial noise issues.
Unlike pollution of water or air by chemicals, noise pollution is not visible but falls within the definition of being both a ‘pollutant’ and ‘environmental nuisance’ under the Environment Protection Act 1993.
EPA Principal Adviser for Noise Ian Yorke said the fundamental nature of how the policy regulates noise remains largely unchanged.
“The existing policy has been in effect for 16 years and some improvements have been identified over that time,” he said.
“In addition, with the introduction of the Local Nuisance and Litter Control Act 2016, local government is now responsible for the management of local nuisance issues, such as noise from sources not licensed by the EPA and domestic noise sources. Most provisions under Part 6 of the Environment Protection (Noise) Policy 2007 have been removed to avoid duplication of these provisions.”
The removal of duplicated provisions now covered under the Local Nuisance and Litter Control Act 2016 has resulted in a name change to the policy, that will now assess and regulate noise from commercial and industrial sites.
The new policy is connected to decision-making regarding noise impacts of developments under the South Australian planning system, including the Planning, Development and Infrastructure Act 2016 and the single electronic Planning and Design Code.
The new policy is established under Part 5 of the Act. It was gazetted on 3 August 2023 and will be implemented from 31 October 2023.