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HomeMy WebLinkAbout019) oRAt rEsnMoNY, NovEMBER 7s, 2018 JEFFERSON COUNW PIANNING COMMISSION, REF: ZON18-00035 Diane Johnson, 1521 Dabob Road, Quilcene SUMMARY: The Ordinance under consideration by the Jefferson County Commissioners regarding the operating conditions of shooting ranges in Jefferson County is supposed to protect the safety and health of those who use those ranges and that of the surrounding community members. The County is essentially rural in nature; the sounds of the country are more likely to be of a natural origin, animals calling or crashing through the brush , or the wind, or rain, the sound of waves, an occasional tree branch snapping off, those for which our hearing apparatus was adapted. lts residents are only intermittently exposed to the kinds of industrial sounds/noises, such as helicopters, heavy machinery, chain saws, sirens, explosions, banging and clanging, freeway sounds, or even loud music that residents of more urban environments must endure, either in their jobs or in their surroundings, and certainly, to the sounds of shooting that mimic war. These types of sound have been declared "noise pollution" and a national hazard by Congress as early as L972 due to their negative effects on human health. The sense of hearing is our early warning system, it operates 24/7, and its purpose is to stimulate our bodies to get ready to defend ourselves or move rapidly away in avoidance. lf the perceived sound is annoying or upsetting or causes fear, or causes damage to the body, whether or not the individual is aware of those effects, it is defined as '.Eqise,." Noise can be of anv magnitude or duration, therefore, and the degree of upset is determined by its meaning to the individual and the individual's perceived ability to control the noise. Noise creates a stress response in the body, which leads to changes in the neuroendocrine system, including the release of cortisol. lf the noise is extremely loud, unremitting or repeated over a long period of time, or interferes with task performance or speech, a chronic state of preparedness/stress can occur, eventually even when the stimulus is not present. Such a state leads to the General Adaptive Syndrome, where the neuroendocrine system NEVER returns to a calm state. Damage from such system overloads can eventually lead to medical conditions such as gastric ulceration, immune system disorders, hypertension, atherosclerosis, sterility, obesity, and personality changes, such as excessive irritability and anger responses. So. NOISE. as defined as anv unwanted and uncontrollable sound. CAN and DOES cause phvsiological changes and ultimatelv. damage. in the human bodv. The effects and their costs may not be, generally are not, immediately perceivable, but they undoubtedly account for a large percentage of the ever- increasing costs of medical care in this country. Researchers have also found that healine from the effects of noise can come through exposure to natural environments and sounds. and to total quiet. With respect to gun sounds/noise, one of my friends said it best: "Most normal people become upset, annoyed, or anxious at the sound of gunfire, and we never get used to it!" I The compelling reasons for action are the facts that substantial groups of the population are vulnerable to adverse health effects from noise, that the quality of life is generally eroded by annoyance from noise, that sleep is disrupted, that productivity is reduced, and that the concentration required to learn is affected by noisy environments. A significant responsibility rests on the business or industry to actively reduce noise emission at the source. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE JEFFERSON COUNW ORDINANCE: First, it is imperative that noise from a commercial pun range be addressed in the ordinance, not as a "nuisance," but ag an extreme kind of the modern, industrial/urban sound proven to cause emotional and phvsiological harm to humans, especially children, and to wildlife. For this reason, Washington State WAC 173-60-030 and 173-60-050 should be applied. Further, testing for the noise pattern should be done at maximum utilization and weapon caliber, and with helicopter noise, not with a single or few random pistol shots. Given the geography of the area, the sound-carrying capacity of the atmosphere, and the extreme quiet of most county soundscapes, the distance of one mile for considering residential effects is a joke-the sound of the average hunting rifle can be heard at one mile. For example, due to the increased intensity at the existing shooting range, the Sheriff says complaints are coming from much farther away,2 miles or more, in the city. The proposed new range has four communities within two miles, and one major business just over a mile away that would be destroyed by the noise. One mile is not adequate-three miles is a more realistic radius for consideration of the much more intense. persistent shooting of a shootine facilitv with multiple ranqes and helicopter pads. These stipulations need to be made in the ordinance to bring them under control of the operating permit. The best solution from the point of view of the general public for whom the noise of a shooting facility would form a feature of their soundscape would be for all gun/shootins ranges to be indoors. I urge you to seriously consider that option for the future of gun ranges in Jefferson Countv. lf outdoor shooting facilities are to be built, the regulations should require the proposing party demonstrate a clear plan to include sound-mitieating berms of adequate height to direct all or nearly all of the sound waves upward away from the range, rather than laterally, or other mitigations that would create the same kind of protections. An even better plan would be to place the facility in a deep ravine at a distance of no less than three miles from the nearest inhabitants. One local citizen told me he knows of such a place right now that would meet that criterion. Or perhaps the county could work with DNR to make an appropriate land swap to facilitate such a solution. Lastly, local shooting facilities should provide training in firearm operation, care, and safety, as well as personal self-defense to individuals, including groups of individuals, and hunter safety for children and adults, as well as providing a safe environment for the practice in and sport of shooting. However, given the greatly increased intensity of weaponry (calibers) and helicopters, and the increasing density of Jefferson County, I urge you to prohibit organized militarv trainine at shooting facilities in Jefferson County, and that organized police, sheriff, or other law enforcement training be limited to local law enforcement. with a prohibition on explosions of any kind. Since these are brief in duration and only periodically required, their impact would be more tolerable to residents.