R. E. Nugent and Hal Amick
The
primary purposes of municipal land use zoning ordinances are to protect and
promote a desired quality of life and to ensure that incompatible land uses
do not occur. Zoning considers aspects of community planning such as aesthetics,
housing needs, protection and development of natural resources, population
density, compatibility of adjacent land uses, and environmental quality.
Typical environmental quality considerations include water, air, solid waste,
and noise. Seldom, if ever, are vibrations considered; when they are, it is
often in the form of a vague nuisance ordinance applying only to the effects
of vibrations on people. Rarely does the vibration ordinance quantify the
acceptable limit or describe how the vibrations should be measured.
A good planning tool is needed not only to protect people and structures from
vibration, it is also needed in the siting and planning of research and industrial
parks containing sensitive high-tech facilities, such as those used in manufacturing
microelectronic integrated circuits. These facilities are generally far more
sensitive to vibrations than are people. Yet, despite their sensitivity, they
are offered no encroachment protection by vibration or zoning ordinances.
This paper suggests that modern planning must also consider vibration in land
use zoning and offers criteria and guidelines.
Reprinted from Proceedings of Inter-Noise 89, Newport Beach, California (December 1989)