City council is considering changing the noise protection ordinance, net zero energy consumption in city buildings

From a press release from the City of Las Cruces

Changes to the Las Cruces City Noise Ordinance could soon be submitted to Las Cruces City Council for consideration.

At its working session on September 13, the Council discussed recommendations from a preliminary study carried out in February 2019 by Bohannan Huston, Inc, an office in Las Cruces. The independent study found that the city’s noise ordinance doesn’t mention or set decibel levels, making enforcement difficult.

From March to early September of this year, the city received 737 noise complaints. The main cause of noise complaints in the city are vehicles with modified exhaust systems or loud music. The second most common noise complaints concern live music; and one to two complaints per month are related to noise from utility task vehicles (UTVs).

The study proposed that in commercial and industrial areas during the day a value of 72 decibels at a distance of 7 meters from the noise source should be set as a generally acceptable noise level; 67 decibels, day and night, in residential areas and 67 decibels at night in commercial and industrial areas. However, there has been discussion in the council that noise levels vary across the city and the decibel levels recommended in the study may not be appropriate for commercial or industrial areas.

The council members agreed that a balanced noise level should be achieved. The council also agreed that any changes to the city’s noise ordinance could be reviewed by the city’s policy review committees.

At the meeting, council members also discussed the benefits of implementing net zero energy consumption in urban buildings. The city’s sustainability office presented recommendations for action that the council could issue for the transition to net zero.

Net zero is an effort to meet the energy needs of a building or community through renewable energy and other complementary sustainable practices. Moving to net zero could reduce the cost burden, improve health and help meet the greenhouse gas reduction targets set in the city’s climate protection plan.

Recommendations presented to the Council included the development of a regulation or resolution requiring the application of net-zero policies and practices to any new city government building. The city has already implemented some of these practices, including using solar energy and installing electric vehicle chargers in some city facilities.

The council also discussed the development of all-electric city buildings and possibly incentives for builders to develop all-electric subdivisions. Some councilors and city officials agreed that working on the electrification transition could generate potential financial savings for low- and middle-income city dwellers in the future.

A resolution in support of net-zero practices in urban buildings is likely to soon be submitted to the Council for formal consideration and adoption.