New noise protection requirements for Ontario farms

Friday, July 8, 2016

by SUSAN MANN

Almost one-third of Ontario’s farms must now comply with new noise protection requirements for workers under the province’s Occupational Health and Safety Act.

The new noise regulation under the Act came into effect July 1 and applies to all farming operations with paid workers, Labour Ministry spokesperson Janet Deline says by email.

Farms without paid employees don’t fall under the Act.

The new noise regulation also applies to other sectors, such as mining and the oil and gas industry.

Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs spokesperson Bianca Jamieson says by email their figures, based on the 2011 Census, show about 16,000 of the 52,000 farms in Ontario reported hiring labour on their operations.

Deline says the new noise regulation “will help protect Ontario’s workers from noise-induced hearing loss, a leading cause of occupational disease for Ontario workers.”

Under the regulation, the maximum allowable limit for noise exposure is 85 decibels during an eight-hour shift.

A decibel is the unit used to measure the intensity of sound.

The regulation also stipulates measures employers must put in place to reduce workers’ exposure to noise, such as engineering controls, work practices, and the use of personal protective equipment like hearing protection, Deline says. Employers must also provide workers with hearing protection devices and train them on their use.

In an online article on its website, Ontario Pork says the maximum allowable limit of 85 decibels for noise exposure over eight hours is the standard outlined in the regulation. However a limit of 80 decibels is recommended.

There’s also a concern about short-term noise exposure. “As part of farm life, noise exposure is often taken for granted but could cause gradual, permanent hearing loss,” according to the article. That’s because “the short-term duration of high-pitched noise may be enough to exceed the eight-hour exposure.”

The article provided some sample farm noise levels, including:

• Chicken coop and conventional voices – 60 to 70 decibels.
• Tractor idling, conveyors – 80 decibels.
• Diesel trucks, power lawn mowers – 95 decibels.
• Power tools – 100 decibels.
• Pig squealing – can hit 109 decibels.
• Chain saw – 118 decibels.

Farmers under the Act should keep records of everything, from testing equipment for noise levels to training workers, the article says.

Ministry of Labour inspectors will be encouraging compliance with the new regulation, particularly with the training aspect of it.

“Let your records demonstrate your commitment to protecting workers’ hearing,” the article says. BF